Findings
by Annn99
Summary: After everything that has happened in S4, Neal seems to be reformed... SEEMS being the key word here... He is just young, very handsome and now single since Sara left for London... a long distance relationship is not exactly a GPS tracking anklet either. All together make Neal an easy target to be seduced by the versatile and sexy New York City... and its citizens.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! I'm too restless with so many spoilers and teasers for Season 5... An idea came to mind... I hope you like!**

**I don't own White Collar, sadly. I did steal one line from a certain promotional poster... if you're a fan from the beginning, you'll know what it is ;)**

**Enjoy!**

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**Chapter 1**

Walking down the streets of New York had become one of Neal's favorite hobbies since working for the FBI and establishing a somewhat normal honest life. The past few months had presented turmoil for his normalcy. His father had appeared only to disappear again and become a fugitive after killing Pratt; Peter had gone in and out of jail; Hughes had resigned and Calloway had been thrown away back to Atlanta; Sara had left for London; Mozzie was still Mozzie, probably the only constant in his life who hadn't changed much.

His weekends had become more monotonous since Sara left. He couldn't call his emotional state as depressed, he often explained feeling nostalgia for his Palazzo Sasso time he had with her, just when he thought he could build a normal relationship… Not that Sara had blown up like Kate but she put on them many miles of distance. They remained in touch, but it wasn't the same.

He had developed a certain weekend routine which consisted on waking up on a Sunday morning, drinking coffee on his terrace, taking a shower and then going out for a long walk in Central Park to end up sitting on a bench and sketching the by-passers or the trees, the cardinals and squirrels, whatever came his way. Sometimes he would borrow Satchmo after he had breakfast with the Burke's but that wasn't very often. Then, around noon, he would come back home, turn on his computer and watch Sara practice her cello for one hour through Skype, afterwards, they usually chatted for a little while before she had to go to bed for an early Monday start. Then Neal was left with half a day to kill by himself and usually Mozzie helped there, they would just watch an old movie or play chess. It was a boring routine, Mozzie thought "go out and steal a museum, Neal, you're killing me here!" he usually said. But to Neal, it was just normal life and after all the events, he needed this.

After a boring Sunday, the only thing left was to sleep early so by 8 pm, Neal was in bed dozing off. Naturally, Monday morning came very very early…

Neal arrived at the office at 6:30 am. When Peter, Jones and Diana got there at 8, he had already gone through the week's cases and had a thorough briefing prepared.

"Morning all. We've got some interesting ones this week. Conference room?" Neal said to the team of FBI agents and didn't wait for them to respond when he was already going up the stairs. The three agents just looked at each other with raised eyebrows and did as Neal told them, inviting the rest of the White Collar division to the meeting.

Peter let Neal lead the meeting. The younger man was dead on conducting the meeting, listing the main details, providing insights and MO's for the criminals and pretty much solving the cases, giving instruction for next steps to every single agent in the conference room. Peter was in awe of this man. He always knew Neal was smart but he was becoming the best criminal profiler that he had ever seen, he could probably become a brilliant FBI agent if the Bureau allowed him to receive the proper training at Quantico. Hell, he already was a master with guns, he practically just needed the badge.

"Neal? A minute? My office" were Peter's words signaling Neal to join him in private

"What's up, Peter" said a very cheerful Neal

Peter raised an eyebrow "You stole the words from my mouth. What is up with you, Neal?"

"What do you mean?" Neal was confused

"You made senior agents look like toddlers back there" said Peter

Neal chuckled and actually felt a little bad for the other agents, some of them where kinda slow sometimes in his opinion "Sorry, that wasn't my intention. I was just trying to be a step ahead, you know, getting an early start on the week"

Peter was not convinced "Are you bored? Reformed thief's withdrawal symptom? Do you need to get laid?"

Neal laughed wholeheartedly and then "Peter!" he said in mock shock

"I don't mean to pry but it's just weird. At what time did you get in today?" Peter said actually looking a little embarrassed

Neal looked at his feet and dusted off invisible whirlpool from his lapel "six thirty" he said quietly

"Dear Lord" sighed Peter "Neal, are you ok? Wanna talk? I do appreciate the good job and you know it but I also want you to be happy and to have a life"

"Peter, I have a radius" deadpanned Neal as if that explained why he wasn't having a life

"Yes but you only have one year left and you're a very handsome 33 year-old bachelor. So don't give me that crap. You deserve to have fun and enjoy the good things in life even with a radius" explained Peter with a concerned look

Neal had a mischievous look "Peter, I'm being a good boy and you're telling me that it's ok to be a little bad?"

"God help me but yes. You're my friend too and I just don't want you to spend some of the best years of your life working cases for the FBI from dawn 'till dusk!". Peter was now wailing furiously his hands everywhere trying to make a point and it was very amusing to Neal, almost cute.

Peter put both hands on Neal's shoulders, looked directly into his eyes and very seriously said "You and I, are going out Friday night"

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**You like? Thoughts? Please review! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**For those wondering... yes, Sara is in this story... just don't hate me too much, I promise I'm taking care of my beloved characters, it's just my withdrawal, I need a little drama LOL**

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**Chapter 2**

Peter put both hands on Neal's shoulders, looked directly into his eyes and very seriously said "You and I, are going out Friday night"

Neal laughed "Peter, I appreciate it but no thanks, I'm good" he said a little horrified

"What? You think I'm too old to hang out with?" said Peter with mock hurt

"Of course not, Peter, it's just… weird" Neal said

"Wanna invite Mozzie? How about Jones? Just a guy's night out, we hit the town, drink beer and have fun!" Peter said looking very proud for his awesome plan

Neal was beginning to feel nauseous "Seriously?" he said with a tired look

"Too cheap for Mr. Sophisticated? Ok then, how about we go to a fancy Broadway show and dinner afterwards and I can bring along Elle" Peter was not giving up

Neal thought that sounded so much better "That could actually work… but"

"No buts. It's settled! And on Sunday, we're going to a baseball game, just you and me, hamburgers and beer. I'm not taking no for an answer" the archeologist Peter Burke, knew how to dig and be stubborn about it.

Neal sighed in resignation; he knew it was a lost battle. He nodded and with a quick thanks, went back to his desk. He truly appreciated Peter's efforts to cheer him up although he wasn't actually down but apparently the world wasn't prepared for a zen version of Neal Caffrey.

Later on, by Peter's irrefutable command, he went home early around 3 pm. He didn't wanna go home just yet so he started wandering the streets and ended up on Lincoln Center. He always enjoyed this part of town, he imagined that if he had been a student, he would probably would have enjoyed mastering in arts or something there. Ballet dancer maybe? Nah, he didn't like wearing tights. Musician? Probably. He did enjoy the classics plus it was sexy playing an instrument, Sara looked very sexy playing the cello, he thought. Too bad he never got the chance of watching her play live, if he had only known while she was still in NY, but he just found out a couple of months ago when she tried to hung up on him to go practice, so it was his idea to join her on Skype and enjoy a private concert every Sunday. There were so many things he didn't know about her, yet he felt like he could spent the rest of his life with her. That was Neal Caffrey, romantic and impulsive.

He looked at the clock on his phone and realized that Sara was probably still awake, she was a late owl and it was around midnight or so in London. He took his phone and dialed her house.

"Hello?" she answered a little out of breath

"Please tell me you're doing midnight pilates and nothing more" he winced at imagining the worst

Sara chuckled "What's up Caffrey. I was just getting off the shower"

"Alone, I hope?" he was teasing her but deep down he truly hoped she was alone

Sara remained quiet for a little while and then she said "What if I wasn't alone?"

Neal was not expecting that "Um, that would not be good"

"Not good for you or for me?" she said, not teasing. Geez, Neal thought he just wanted to chat and she was all feisty

"Are you in that time of the month?" he asked

Sara laughed relaxing a little "No Neal. I'm just wondering…"

"Wondering about what?" he asked while walking to cross the street towards Central Park to sit on a bench. Cars honking and people talking, all kinds of street noises in the background

"Where are you?" she asked deflecting his question

"Central Park. Peter let me take the day off" he answered simply

"Oh? Well, good for you"

"Sara?"

"Yes?" she said innocently

He chuckled "Are you gonna be this difficult?"

"Neal, why did you call?" she asked

"Um… just occurred to me" he said not really having a reason

"Out of boredom or habit?" she said

"Of course not. I just feel comfortable talking with you" he said fidgeting with his hat

"Do you miss me?" she said in a small voice

"Every single day" he answered without hesitation

"Me too…" she said and remained quiet

"But?" he urged her

"How do you know there's a but?"

"Because I can hear your lips pursing and your breath containing itself, which is something you do when you want to say something but can't find the words or are embarrassed to say it" he explained

"Holly shit, Caffrey. You're creepy" she said

Neal laughed "So? Are you gonna tell me?"

"I'm just…" she took a deep breath and blurted "I think we should stop talking so often. We are hiding from our current lives and not actually living them"

"What do you mean?" he asked

"What I mean is that, we are both afraid of being vulnerable and opening up to people and it's just safer to pretend we're emotionally satisfied with a phone call" she explained voicing her feelings and she knew that Neal was much like her.

Neal thought about it for a moment. They talked almost every day and skyped on Sundays, he even had a recurring appointment in his phone's calendar to set up time to talk to her while sipping wine at home before going to bed while she was having breakfast, it was their daily date, just like he would do when she was with him. Neal realized that she was probably right but he was fine with it. He liked his new routines and the way his Sundays developed. But maybe Sara didn't…

"I miss you, Sara" Neal said again as if that explained why he was living his life the way he was

"I miss you too, Neal, but we're friends and friends don't spend thousands of dollars on phone calls saying sweet nothings every day" she said

"You know we're more than friends, Sara and…" he started saying but she cut him off

"Neal, don't. As much as I hate to say it, you can't be my boyfriend anymore. It's absurd, we're miles away!" she said pacing around her bedroom barefoot and wrapped on her towel. She was getting cold from being all wet from the shower but she didn't care.

"But a lot of people make it through and we could just…" she cut him off again

"Neal, I made this decision and I have to assume the consequences. Plus it's not fair… for any of us" she said in a sad tone

Neal realized Sara had her mind set and nothing would change it. But why? Did she find someone she liked? Neal cringed at that thought. It had been almost 6 months since she left, it was enough time to meet people. Or maybe Peter also talked to her about having a live? No, that was absurd.

"You want to be free and meet new people" it wasn't a question. Neal was good at guessing Sara's thoughts. When she didn't say anything he added "Shit. Am I an emotional tracking anklet with a radius to you? Do you feel trapped?" he asked

Sara could've laughed at the analogy if it wasn't such a delicate subject "Don't be silly. I just think we could be missing out…"

"On what exactly?" Neal was afraid of losing her but he didn't know how to show fear so he just showed anger in his voice.

"I don't know, Neal, a lot of things… or people" she said timidly

"Are you dating someone?" he blurted

"No! But…" she sounded even guilty

"You want to have the possibility and I'm tying you down. I get it. You're a big girl, feel free. We're just friends after all…" he said sarcastically and angry

"Oh please! It's not like you aren't banging girls all the time" she said now angry as well

"Sara, I haven't been with any woman other than you for a long time" he said in a small voice and then added "And I'm not planning to bang anyone anytime soon" he said enhancing the 'bang' as she said

She was quiet and Neal could hear her labored breathing, despite all the street noises. He knew she was trying to hold back tears. He closed his eyes and sighed; he didn't mean to upset her like this… he put his hat on and said "I love you, Sara. Through time and distance, you will always be very dear to my heart. Have a good night and please take care" and he hung up.

Sara threw herself to the bed, still wrapped in her towel and started crying silently. She loved him too but she didn't believe in long-distance relationships and being alone hurt too much. It was only increasing her workaholic nature because she didn't want a life outside her job, her cello and her Neal. And it was not healthy. She felt too alone. At least Neal had Peter and Mozzie, he wasn't alone; and even if he refused, he could have any girl he wanted. 'So can you, Sara' she thought but Neal was hard to replace… She grabbed her phone and texted him "I love you too" and she felt asleep hugging her phone as if it was Neal himself.

For the remaining of the week, Neal didn't call Sara and when she called him, he didn't answer. He knew it was a little childish but he decided to give her the space she needed. If there was someone who understood the value of space and freedom, it was Neal. And he thought she deserved the chance to be free and live her life. He would have to do the same…

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**Uh oh... Bare with me, promise this story leads somewhere ;)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

'Unknown number', Peter read on his phone "Burke" he answered

"Suit, give me back my friend!" shouted a very desperate Mozzie

"Mozzie?"

"No, Matthew Keller…" Mozzie said exasperated making Peter sigh "What are you doing to Neal?! He is just dragging his feet, sleeping and doing nothing more than just painting weird stuff on the same canvas over and over again. He isn't even drinking wine, straight scotch all the time now!" finished the little man in one breathe and on the verge of collapsing with a nervous breakdown.

"Mozzie, calm down. This isn't a good time" said Peter looking at Neal with an apologetic look which made Neal frown because when Mozzie called Peter, it usually meant trouble or…

"Peter" started Neal but was cut off by a shush

"I'll return the call, alright? Yes, I promise. Bye" said Peter and hung up

"What did Mozzie want?" asked Neal curious

"Um, I don't know, he started rambling nonsense. I'll call him later. So, where were we?" said Peter doing a very lame job at hiding the real reason why Mozzie called.

Neal knew his two best friends were like God and the Devil, on opposite sides but plotting together when it came to maintaining the balance of the universe, which in this case meant, keeping Neal mentally and emotionally sane.

"Neal, you hanging in there buddy?" asked Peter with a concerned look

Neal smirked "Buddy?" he shook his head. Peter sucked at being sympathetic, he sounded ridiculous being all sweet; he preferred the 'cowboy up' expression anytime over this 'buddy' crap. "I'm fine, Peter. Tell Mozzie that drinking scotch doesn't mean I'm depressed. And, you two? Cut it off, ok?" Neal said raising menacing eyebrows and made a bee line to his desk, sulking.

Peter was left there frowning and immediately called Elle to see if their Friday-night plan was going smoothly. Neal was not happy at all and he wanted to help his friend.

Friday came and around 4 pm, Peter was getting all anxious to tell Neal their plans. He had trusted Elizabeth to arrange everything. Fancy show and fancy dinner, he instructed. Elizabeth would have to choose the where and Peter told her that it could even be outside of his radius as long as they didn't leave the surrounding area of New York.

"Neal, you ready to call it a day?" said Peter all cheerful

"Yeah… I'm just gonna go home" answered Neal while turning off his computer

"Tango Fire!" said Peter all excited

"What?"

"That's the show we're seeing tonight! I hear it's really good. Sexy dancers and great music. All guys wearing hats. Very rat pack. You're gonna love it" said Peter not convincing Neal at all

As much as Neal appreciated Peter's intentions, he was not in the mood at all.

"C'mon! Cheer up, Neal. Elle picked the show and afterwards we're going to this French fancy restaurant to eat all those things I can't even pronounce. And it's all outside of your radius!" finished Peter really excited

Neal was very touched at his friend. He just smiled in gratitude and nodded "Sounds like a plan. See you later then"

"I'll pick you up at seven" said Peter before leaving

Neal walked home just enjoying the city and arrived to just fall asleep on the couch.

Peter and Elle arrived sharp at seven and knocked on Neal's door to find him asleep on the couch.

"Neal!" shouted Peter

"Wha…? I'm sorry, I feel asleep. Give me 5 minutes and I'll be out" said Neal getting up embarrassed and heading for the bathroom

Evening naps and Neal Caffrey were not usually words that could be pronounced in one sentence, Peter thought. He was either catching a bug or Mozzie was right about his depression.

Ten minutes later Neal came out dressed sharply in dark grey suit and white shirt, no tie. It was almost winter now and it was very chilly so he grabbed his coat and hat and was ready to go.

"No tie?" asked Peter

"Nah, I don't feel like it. Plus, it's tango, Peter" said Neal heading for the door. Peter just nodded as if that explained everything. Tango meant no tie for some reason but he had no idea why. He shrugged and followed.

They arrived at State Theatre in Brunswick, New Jersey. This was an off-Broadway show and it looked very cool. It made Neal smile. It had been a long time since he had time to enjoy a show with friends so he felt actually pretty good.

The place was amazing, decorated all in red velvet with small tables of four surrounding the stage so the audience could enjoy some drinks and snacks while the show played. They took their seats front row and Neal ordered a nice Argentinian red Carménère wine, as well as some empanadas. Peter excused himself to the bathroom leaving Elle and Neal alone.

"Thanks for picking this show, Elle. I'm sure if Peter was left with that task, we would end up at Yankee stadium" Neal said

Elizabeth laughed "It's nice to be out, isn't it? I don't know why we had never done this before"

Neal lifted his ankle as an answer "Remember?"

Elle chuckled "Yeah. It's hard to remember you're a convicted felon. You're family to us"

"Thank you" he said sincerely

"Neal… Peter is worried about you and I know he's not very subtle about it so if you need to talk… I'm here" she said smiling tenderly

Peter returned just in time to see the lights go out to let the show begin.

A single light turned on in the middle of the stage and a very aggressive tango tune started to play. It was a mixture of aggressiveness and sensuality. It was very seductive and hypnotizing.

A woman appeared on stage, dressed in a very small and tight red dress which gave way to a couple of very slim and strong long legs clad in black silky pantyhose. The dress clung to her slim figure and provided a clear sight of her strong muscles defined in just the perfect feminine way from her hips to her shoulders leaving a pronounced cleavage and elegant neck to top the attire.

Neal was hypnotized by her figure. She was beautiful in the most elegant and esthetic way he had ever seen. He had seen such slim yet strong body only once and not only seen but held and made love to on several occasions not so long ago. But what made Neal gasp and almost pass out was her face and her hair… she had flames of fire instead of hair, red curls adorned her beautiful face which seemed sculpted to perfection not in a porcelain-doll kinda way but in a very stubborn and feminine way. Neal was in trance… gaping at her literally while she danced in the sexiest way he had ever seen, almost as if she was flying on the stage but with such strength, that looked beautifully dangerous. He wanted to paint this woman!

The first song ended and the crowd exploded into furious clapping. Neal was in complete awe. Peter noticed and nudged him "You liking it?" he said smirking knowingly. Neal just nodded and raised his glass to rehydrate before passing out.

The show went on with several songs played to perfection by the live musicians and singers, adorned with impeccable dancing by all the crew. Neal only had eyes for the redhead who came on stage first.

As if on cue with his thoughts, the mysterious redhead came on stage again, this time with a black short dress and a fedora. Oh boy.

The redhead started dancing around the stage and came down to walk in between the audience's tables while doing some sexy dancing to the gentlemen sitting in each table, some of them, she invited to stand up and dance a little bit. It was not rude, it was in fact quite tasteful and elegant but despite that, more than one man in the room will have to either get laid afterwards with their partners or excuse themselves to the bathroom.

Redhead approached Neal's table and locked eyes with him. She smiled mischievously and walked slowly to him keeping the rhythm of the tango. She threw her fedora to the stage as if it was a boomerang and instead took Neal's putting it on with a cool spinning trick and started playing with the hat passing it through her arm to put it on Neal's head while caressing his face with her delicate fingers. Neal was enjoying this a little too much and just kept on grinning.

She was clearly enjoying this as well and she started playing with her long legs and Neal's chair – as if it was empty and not caring that a very handsome and grinning man was sitting there -, jumping from one side to the other provoking him all the way. The crowd even started whistling and clapping so she offered her hand and he took it gladly. When he stood up and got close to her, he gasped.

Those eyes… hazel and green. He had seen them before. He yearned to see them again every day for the rest of his life. He was hypnotized. He was really Sara-sick but hell, he couldn't help it, he missed her and now he was even seeing Sara on a tango dancer and he didn't care. He was gonna take whatever he could.

"Can Neal dance tango?" Elle asked Peter

"I wouldn't be surprised if he could" answered Peter, really expecting Neal to dance perfectly like everything he did.

And as predicted, Neal started twisting and turning the redhead as if they had rehearsed it. The crowd went wild when he made her lay back and almost kissed her teasing her, then he brought her back up and took his hat spinning it in his hand and wearing it on his head. The song ended with a bang and the crowd stood up clapping furiously. Neal looked very comfortable being the center of attention and just bended over in appreciation while holding the girl's hand. She turned to give him a hug to say goodbye when he felt the familiar 'bump and grab'. He caught her hand and sure enough, there it was: his wallet. He grinned and she turned crimson red giving back his wallet.

"What's your name?" he asked

"Are you gonna call the cops on me?" she said defying him still smiling

"No sweetheart. I just want to see you again" he said as charming as he could be

She grinned widely and whispered in his ear "Nicolle Williams" and she was gone.

Neal came back to his table grinning and running his hands on his hair which was all disheveled after dancing like that.

"Well well! Look at you! Where did you learn to dance like that!" said Peter patting his shoulder and Neal just kept on staring at the stage in awe.

"Neal? That girl really got to you huh?" said Peter smirking

"That girl… tried to steal my wallet" said Neal grinning

A hot woman who can handle a hat like that and also a thief? Oh boy. Peter felt the beginning of a headache.

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**Before you start cursing at me, I promise this will lead to something good for all Sara fans out there ;)**

**Oh and this Tango Fire is actually playing now so if you live in the NY - NJ area, go see it! I haven't seen it, but I saw one in Buenos Aires and oh my God it was amazing! I wish could dance like that! **

**Should I continue or do you want me to burn in hell for making Neal be interested in another woman? LOL**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The rest of the evening was very pleasant. They had a nice dinner, nice wine and even nicer conversation. Neal felt at ease for the first time in a long time. Even when there were still secrets between him and the Burkes, he felt as if he could confide in them completely and being Neal Caffrey, conman, it was a rare and precious thing to feel.

While they were waiting for the valet to bring their car and Elizabeth to come back from the restroom, Neal's phone started ringing… looking at the screen, Neal saw it was Sara.

"Aren't you gonna get that?" asked Peter curious

"Um…" Neal hesitated and decided he should answer, it was an odd hour in London, too early, maybe Sara needed something "Hello?"

"Hi Neal… are you alright?" asked Sara concerned

"Yeah. How are you, Sara" said Neal in a flat tone. Peter nodded acknowledging and started walking a couple steps away to give him some privacy. "It's um, very early for you over there, isn't it?" asked Neal keeping his tone conversational

"I'm at the airport, I have a meeting to attend in Zurich and then go to Florence for a couple of days for a training course" answered Sara business-like and then added in quiet voice "You haven't been answering my calls, I understand you're angry with me"

"I'm not angry, I've been busy… and you said we didn't have to talk everyday" said Neal coldly and Sara cringed, she didn't intend for this to happen, she just wanted to not feel guilty.

"I see… you know what, it's hard for me too! And I just wanted to…" started Sara but Neal interrupted

"Be free and not feel guilty. Yeah, you already said that. So, did you call for something in particular?" asked Neal keeping the same cold tone.

Sara felt a sharp pain in her chest but just sighed… "No Neal, I just wanted to… talk to you. I miss you" she said in a soft voice.

Neal imagined she had to be covering the phone with one hand embarrassed to be sounding vulnerable in public but too bad she didn't want to share her vulnerability with him. He was angry but more than that, he was sad. Of course it was easier to show anger than sadness, hence his attitude and coldness. He remained quiet for a while and realized he was being vulnerable in public as well so he decided to put an end to this. He cleared his throat and said "Me too. Take care" and then hung up.

"Everything alright, Neal?" asked Peter

"No… but I'll survive" said Neal

"You and Sara…?" Peter was terrible at this

"Me and Sara are no longer together Peter, you know she went to London, right? Remember, old man?" said Neal being funny and evading

Peter sighed "Yeah… if you wanna talk about it, I'm here ok? And I thought you were over it, I mean from the way you danced with that girl tonight, wheeew!"

Neal chuckled "Peter, that was just a show and she tried to steal my wallet so I don't think you would approve of me dating someone like her, would you?"

"Probably not but if it makes you happy, I can get another anklet, matching pink maybe and you can live happily ever after" said Peter and Neal actually laughed at that. Peter wasn't that terrible after all, Neal thought, at least he made him laugh.

Neal was so not over Sara but after tonight, he at least felt there was a life beyond her and he might be able to move on eventually. He had good friends and he loved his job. Plus, this girl Nicolle Williams, had intrigued him a lot and he wanted to find out more about her. There was just something about her…

The next day, Neal did some research on Tango Fire and the cast, especially on a certain redhead. He saw that Nicolle was a professional dancer who had been touring with the show across many parts of the world and her previous works included some ballet and other performances for some Broadway shows. She had gone to ballet school in Prague and taken some American folk dancing in Argentina. She was a consolidated and a very versatile dancer. Neal was very impressed with her but also intrigued about the fact that there was no personal information whatsoever, not even her nationality, which he assumed would be American and of course, he suspected that Nicolle Williams wouldn't even be her real name. He would have to get some help from his FBI friends to check her out.

Monday morning came and this time, Neal arrived at 10 am with dark circles under his eyes

"Caffrey, you either arrive too early or too late, man!" said Jones and Neal just glared at him with a 'fuck off' look

"Whoa, rough night?" asked Jones seeing that Neal was not up for jokes

"Yeah…" and that was it. Neal headed to his desk head hanging low

Jones frowned, went to get a coffee mug and poured. He suspected Neal needed scotch but double expresso would have to do for now.

"Caffrey, you alright? you don't look good. Can I do something for you?" said Jones offering the mug

Neal looked up and nodded accepting the mug "Thanks, Jones. I'm good"

Jones nodded and started walking to his desk when Neal called him back

"Actually, can you do me a favor? Could you look up someone?" asked Neal

"Neal, you know better…" started Jones

"I know, I know. Peter took me to a tango show and it's a about this dancer, really gorgeous and I just want to know more about her" said the conman with his trademark smile

Jones chuckled and shook his head. This was the usual Caffrey "Alright, give me the name"

30 minutes later Jones returned with the info "Caffrey, you have a good eye for danger, man. She is gorgeous indeed but a crook. Nicolle Williams is an alias. Her name is Clarice Andrews and she has quite a long criminal record, nothing serious but she has been in and out of jail for minor thefts since she was 18"

Neal was thoughtful and just smiled "Is there an address?"

"Caffrey, you better be careful with this one" said Jones handing Neal the file and going back to his desk.

Neal took it and grabbed his phone "Hi, I need to deliver a dozen red roses to 34th east Miller street, Brooklyn"

Nicolle heard the doorbell and was in shock when she saw the delivery boy carrying a big bouquet of roses. She gave a tip to the boy and closed the door. It had been a long time since she had received flowers so she was grinning. There was a note…

_ You left my head spinning… must be the tango._

_ Meet me so we can share hat tricks… Today, Ole Caffe at Gramercy Park 7 pm._

- _Neal_

She smiled so big that it hurt. She knew who Neal was. The ken doll she had danced with on Friday night. She was definitely meeting him.

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**Should I continue? Too much angst, I know... bare with me, I promise you'll like it... eventually! Ha! **


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Neal arrived early to the café. He couldn't place what it was but he felt a very special attraction to this woman. He spotted her crossing the street, confidently walking and swaying her hips in a very sexy way. When she located him she immediately grinned and waved briefly. Neal stood up to greet her and to pull her chair.

"Such a gentleman… thanks. What Jane Austen novel did you escape from?" she said teasing him

Neal had a mock disgust look on his face "Please don´t. I'd like to think I'm just a gentle New Yorker… although I believe that's even more fictional than Mr. Darcy"

She laughed "Good point. So where did you learn to dance like that?"

They had a very nice conversation, lots of laughter and teasing. Neal could tell that Nicolle was a very smart girl with lots of secrets.

"So, Neal… you found out where I live and I don't even know your last name. Care to tell me a little more about you?" she asked

"It's Caffrey. What would you like to know about me?" he said

"Mmm well, for example, what do you do for a living? Brothers, sisters, girlfriend, children, pets?" she asked having fun

Neal chuckled "Well… no siblings, no children and no pets. Um…" he paused for a second feeling a small trace of guilt but Sara wanted it this way so he continued "No girlfriend either"

"Oh, by the sounds of it, looks like you recently lost said girlfriend but don't worry, I'm not gonna pry any further. What about your job?" she said

Neal smirked and said very slowly "I work for the FBI". The look on her face was priceless.

"Shit" she simply said and stopped smiling "That would explain how you found out where I live" she said getting nervous and a little scared.

"Yeah, but hey don't worry. I'll let you in on a little secret" he said and leaned closer on the table before continuing "I'm a consultant, not an agent"

She leaned too and frowned "How does that work? Does that mean you can't put me behind bars?" she whispered conspiratorially

"Exactly" he said smiling broadly and then signaled her to look under the table and she did mirroring his actions. He lifted his pant leg to show the anklet and she sat back immediately making him laugh.

"You are a convicted felon with a GPS tracking anklet!" she said excited yet still whispering

"Wow, didn't know it was such a popular thing" said Neal smiling

"I learned from it when I did time a couple years ago but I didn't know it could actually happen. Oh wait! You are Neal Caffrey!" she said even more excited and grinning widely

Neal was laughing now and just motioned for her to shush. He asked for the check and said "Walk with me"

They began walking across the neighborhood, it was nice and quiet. Neal kept stealing glances at her. He had this feeling about her, as if he already met her somewhere

"So, Clarice… why did you change your name?" he asked and she looked at him shocked "I work for the FBI, it was in your file" he explained smiling

She sighed "Long story… let's just say I was the black sheep in my family and I ran from home since I was a teen"

"I see… and what about brothers, sisters, children, pets… boyfriend?" he said repeating the question she had previously asked him

She smiled "One sister, younger. No children, one cat and… no boyfriend" she said suddenly shy

Neal smirked "That's great" and took her hand "Come, I'll show you a really cool place"

Neal took her to the entrance of Gramercy Park, which was the only private park in New York, only residents with a key could enter. Celebrities mostly where the ones who lived there

"Isn't this park private? Do you have a key?" she asked giddy

"Yes it is private and no, I don't have a key" he said smirking and with a wink he took out his lock-picking set. She just grinned

They got in the park and Neal led them to a corner with a fountain and a thousand tulips and trees lighted by small white bulbs which made it look like a fairytale. It was breathtaking "Oh my God!" Clarice said and turned to hug Neal throwing her arms around his neck "This is amazing!" and she started giggling like a little girl and spinning around perfectly like the professional ballerina she was.

Neal sat on a swing that was placed in one side to see the private show. She was beautiful and very talented. She was ecstatic dancing around with her arms thrown in the air and laughing until a little rock got in her way making her trip and almost fall, if it hadn't been for Neal who caught her right before she hit the floor. They stood there breathing hard and very close to each other. Their lips almost touching. Neal was entranced with her eyes, they looked so much like Sara's. "Clarice…" he breathed and she took it as a cue to lean over and touch his lips with hers. Neal couldn't move and closed his eyes imagining it was Sara... After a minute he opened his eyes to see her and realized it wasn't Sara and tried to part. She grabbed his face and sweetly caressed his cheek coaxing him "It's ok…" she said smiling and kissing him again. This time he did respond to the kiss letting his impulses get the best of him.

He started deepening the kiss, being rough and pressing her closely to his body. Trying to exorcise some hidden demon he had. His hands started roaming her body and she pushed him to sit on the swing and she straddled him. She undid his tie and unbuttoned his shirt running her fingernails on his rock chest and abs. He moaned with pleasure and instinctively pushed his hips against her which got a whimper from her and made her hands immediately go for his zipper. When her fingers touched the sensitive skin beneath his trousers he gasped and opened his eyes. He felt guilty, as if he was cheating on Sara, he couldn't do this "Stop!" he said with anguish on his voice.

"What's wrong?" she asked worried

He pushed her back gently "I'm sorry, Clarice. I can't" he said embarrassed

She was confused but didn't say anything, she just started straitening her clothes "It's ok… you're still in love with your ex, I guess" she said matter-of-factly

He was surprised at her ability to read his thoughts "I'm…" he didn't know what to say

She just smiled "she's a very lucky girl and an idiot for not staying with you"

Neal looked down sad "She had to leave town… the anklet doesn't exactly allow me to follow her" he said sheepishly

"Still an idiot to me" Clarice simply said and when she was ready to go she said "Walk me to a cab? I wanna go home and take a cold shower" she said mischievously

He laughed and said "I'm sorry… I promise this isn't my usual performance. I can make it up to you"

She just kissed his lips softly and said "No, you can't. At least not for a while. But call me when you're ready. You've seen my performance, I'd love to see yours" she teased with a wink

Neal grinned "I will. C'mon, let me walk you to a cab" he said and grabbed her hand.

They walked quietly for a while until Neal broke the silence with a safer topic "So, a younger sister, huh? How was it? I always wanted a brother, being an only child was kind of boring" he said

At the mention of her sister, Clarice got an immediate smile on her face "Oh it was great! We had a blast, she was two years younger and smart as a whip. The summer we spent together in London was one of the best vacations I've ever had. I left home a month after we came back…" she had a somber look on her face and then continued "Leaving Sara was the only thing that hurt"

"Sara?" asked Neal in shock. Summer in London? Older sister who ran away? Too many coincidences, Neal thought. It couldn't be! His last name was Andrews, not Ellis.

"Yeah, that's my sister's name" explained Clarice with nostalgia in her voice "I miss her a lot but at least, when I want to see her, I just go and look at myself in the mirror. We both have my mother's eyes so that helps me feel better" she finished smiling and Neal's blood ran cold.

Shit, he thought.

* * *

**What do you think? :)**

**I just watched Star Wars Episode 3 and relived how Anakin became evil, so I got inspired and before the happy family reunion, I want to write a little angst and evil for our favorite couple hehehe Don't hate me! It's Darth Vader's fault =P**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"Yeah, that's my sister's name" explained Clarice with nostalgia in her voice "I miss her a lot but at least, when I want to see her, I just go and look at myself in the mirror. We both have my mother's eyes so that helps me feel better" she finished smiling and Neal's blood ran cold.

Shit, he thought. Could she be Sara's long lost sister? But Sara's sister was Emily not Clarice! Neal had so many questions but he couldn't just ask them away, he needed to be sure.

"Neal?" she asked

"Huh?"

"Am I boring you?" she asked half-joking "You got all pale too"

"Sorry I just remembered I have something important my FBI boss asked me to do. So let's get you a cab, alright?" he said with a smile and she just frowned not buying it but didn't comment on it. She had just met him anyway.

"So how can I get in touch with you?" he asked with a charming smile

"I thought you could just check my file" she said not as sweet anymore but still playful

"Yeah but it's so much better if I'm officially allowed… unless you don't want to?" he asked hesitantly

She smiled "Of course I do, you smug bastard"

Neal grinned and offered his arm to walk her to the cab. She kissed him good-bye on the cheek and left sighing happily. Neal was definitely a nice catch, she thought. Despite his criminal record, she could tell he had a good heart. If only he wasn't so glued to his past girl… lucky bitch, she thought. Oh but she was patient, she could wait, Neal was worth the wait. She closed her eyes reliving mentally the way his lips felt and his hands, so strong and soft at the same time. His perfectly sculpted face and body… his smell, the best part of him, she thought. He was gorgeous, smart, sweet and a bad boy. She loved the bad boys!

Neal on his part, took a cab home really quickly, still shaken from his suspicions. He took his cellphone "Hi Mozz it's me. I need your help. Meet me at June's… you already there? I should've known. See you in a bit"

The rest of the ride was like an Opera in Neal's head: loud thoughts, confusion, angst, excitement and worry all mixed-up. Clarice was a very lovely girl, she was like the care-free version of Sara and if his suspicions were true, he needed to find out quick before he got in deeper with her.

Once at June's…

"Seriously? Neal, I thought you needed my help to plan a heist!" complained Mozzie

"Not everything is a heist"

"Clearly"

"Listen, this is important ok? She could be Sara's sister! If I bumped into your parents, wouldn't you want me to follow-up and find out more?" asked Neal

Mozzie glared at him "Point taken. So what do you want me to do"

Neal smiled, he had a plan "The FBI criminal records only have information since she was 18 so…"

"Wait a second. FBI criminal records?" interrupted Mozzie

"Yeah, she has been in and out of jail for minor theft crimes" explained Neal with a smirk

"Aaahhh so the lady knows how to have fun" said Mozzie smiling and Neal nodded smiling as well

"Yeah, she is like the naughty version of Sara" said Neal amused and with a far-off look

"I know that look… Neal, have you, um, planted your flag on her crater?" asked Mozzie

Neal cringed disgusted "Agh, Mozz! Don't say that and no, I haven't. I almost did tonight but I was able to stop"

"What made you stop? You didn't have your astronaut's helmet or what?" said Mozzie seriously

"Mozz!" Neal said exasperated at his friend's odd comparisons "I just couldn't… I kept thinking of Sara" said Neal shyly

Mozzie just nodded understanding his friend's predicament "I see… so, if she is indeed Sara's sister, you won't be able to court her… so can I hit on her?"

Neal glared murderously and so Mozzie just raised his hands in peace offering "Please continue"

"She goes by the name of Nicolle Williams but the name that appears on the FBI records is Clarice Andrews, so Nicolle is an alias and Sara's sister name was Emily" explained Neal pacing back and forth in front of his window terrace. He took a sip of his wine and continued "However, her alias is the name she has been using for all her ballerina life, even when she went to school in Prague"

"Maybe she changed her name when she left for school after she was caught by the feds for the first time. As far as I know, ballet schools don't take ex-convicts into their classrooms" suggested Mozzie

"Yeah, that might be possible but it wouldn't explain why she changed her name to Andrews" said Neal stopping in front of Mozzie

"Who says she did? Maybe she isn't Sara's sister. What made you think she was?" asked Mozzie

"She told me she ran from home and that she had a younger sister named Sara, with whom she spent the summer in London. All those things match to what Sara has told me" said Neal

"Mmmm but those could be just coincidences, Neal. Anything else?" asked Mozzie

Neal looked at him for a minute and went to his computer to google her picture "Here, look at her"

Mozzie gasped and cleared his throat readjusting in his seat "She's hot" he said with a hungry look in his eyes while seeing a very sexy picture of her in a very short red dress and fiery hair and eyes. When Mozzie saw Neal's glare, he added "I mean, they look a lot alike"

"Yeah and their eyes… I swear Mozzie, it's creepy how much they look alike. Plus, they have very similar body and facial structures, they could be twins" said Neal looking at the window

"I'm sure the Suit can help you pull the strings to find out more on her identity" suggested Mozzie

"No, I've already asked Jones to do so and the FBI has only one alias and nothing related to the Ellis name. Plus, Peter doesn't know about Sara's sister and I don't want to make noise before necessary" answered Neal

"If you looked at her ID, you could see if it's a fake" said Mozzie simply

"Good idea! Now I just need to see her passport… she lives outside my radius though" said Neal almost to himself

"I can break in and steal it" said Mozzie

"No! I don't want to do anything illegal" said Neal and after seeing Mozzie's disbelief he added "yet"

"Then ask her on a date to go parachuting or something so she has to pull her ID to sign the responsibility documents" said Mozz

"Really Mozzie? Peter would never let me do that! I'm not allowed on planes or any type of transportation devices" said Neal growing desperate with Mozzie

"Oh but the suit knows you've been depressed and he even took you outside of your radius to cheer you up. And it was his idea" explained Mozzie raising his eyebrows suggestively

"Who said I was depressed?" objected Neal but when he faced a 'seriously?' look on Mozzie's face, he continued "Alright, it could work" he admitted.

They clinked their glasses together and smiled in satisfaction at their clever plan.

Neal's 'act' of depression began immediately the next day and so he arrived late at the office looking miserable and kept dragging his feet and having this far-off look on his face, constantly distracted on meetings, not sharp on his comments and not eating properly. All these actions didn't go unnoticed by Peter and he just kept on staring at him from his office thinking what he could do to help his friend.

He dialed the familiar number "Hi hon. Neal is back on his emo mood. What do I do?!" asked Peter desperate "I feel like I have a pubescent son who only wants to go rogue on me and keeps on being depressed all the time"

Elizabeth laughed at his husband "You're a good man Agent Burke"

"Yeah, keep laughing all you want but it's torturing me to have him like this and I'm telling you, when he gets this way he can do a lot of stupid things… Anyway, let me go see if I can take him to lunch or something. Love you hon. See you"

When Neal saw that Peter was approaching his desk, he quickly put his computer screen into the image needed for his little plan to work.

"Hey buddy, watcha doing?" said Peter trying to be casual but with a huge worry face underneath

"Oh, nothing, just daydreaming… do you need anything Peter?" said Neal nonchalantly

Peter looked at his screen and saw a helicopter "Daydreaming with a chopper?" he asked frowning

Neal pretended to be embarrassed "Um yeah, it's just that I used to like helicopters a lot when I was a kid and believe it or not, I have never been in one so I was just fantasizing on renting one of those and flying all around the Manhattan sky when my anklet comes off" he said dreamily and sadly, all at once.

Peter stared at him for a minute "And you remembered this now because…?"

"Because Nicolle mentioned it the other day. Turns out we share the passion for flying" explained Neal

"Nicolle? The tango dancer who tried to steal your wallet?" asked Peter skeptic

"Yeah, I met her for coffee the other day and before you say anything else, we just bumped on the street and nothing's happening between us" said Neal pretending to get all upset

Peter smiled briefly and asked "Do you like her?"

"I guess… Why do you ask?" said Neal with a little smile

"I have an idea to cheer you up" said Peter

"Peter, taking me to the tango show was nice but seriously, I don't need your constant cheering up…" and before Neal could continue, Peter put a hand up shutting him up

"How about I arrange for you and Nicolle to go on a helicopter ride for a couple of minutes on the Manhattan sky?" said Peter not buying his not-depressed crap

Neal gasped and grinned like a little kid "That would be amazing! Could you do that, Peter?"

"Call Nicolle and ask her to join you on Friday but for now, join me for lunch. C'mon, I'm tired of seeing you all lost-puppy eyed" said Peter with a big smile at being able to banish emo-Neal from his sight.

Neal smirked. That was easy, he thought. The first part of his plan was done. He almost felt guilty for lying to Peter; of course he had been on helicopters before, too many to count. But Neal convinced himself that this lie was for a good cause, not for a heist, so it would be all good with karma.

Friday came and Clarice was very excited to go with Neal. She really liked him and going on a second date with him to a place that was a surprise and involved bringing her true ID was even more exciting. She always had a thing for mischievousness and Neal was the epitome of it.

"Hello beautiful" he greeted her charmingly at the entrance of the FBI building

"This is the FBI headquarters. I hope you're not getting me locked up" she said smiling

Neal kissed her hand and said "Oh no, not locked, just… up" he said mysteriously and with a sparkle in his eyes

He held her hand on the elevator and took her all the way up to the last floor where the heliport was located. When they arrived, she gasped at seeing the big machine already roaring and a bunch of FBI agents waiting for them. "What's this?" she asked

"I just thought it would be fun to fly for a little while. See New York from another perspective" he answered charmingly

"You can borrow FBI toys for your own enjoyment? That is sooo cool! I've never been on a helicopter!" she said excited

Neal chuckled "Not exactly borrow, let's just say I'm an important asset for the Bureau and they allow me certain indulgencies" he winked at her and took her hand leading her to the choper's door "Wait, before we go in, I'm gonna need your ID so they can know who's flying"

She handed him her ID and he took it walking to the agents and checking it for himself. Clarice Andrews, born on July 21st, 1980 on Arlington, Virginia. He took a very close look at it and couldn't find any traces of fakeness in it. He checked again, the hologram, the picture, the ink, it was all legit. He felt disappointed. He actually hoped to give Sara this happiness after everything she had done to help him find closure with Kate. On the other hand, he felt relieved at being able to have fun with Clarice without feeling guilty. He knew he was a long way from getting over Sara but at least with Clarice, he knew he was starting with the right foot.

Sighing, he went back to Clarice "We're all set. Shall we?" he said offering his arm, which she took gladly and prepared to fly, literally and emotionally. Neal was a true prince Charming, the looks and his ability to make any girl feel in the clouds… boy, was she in trouble! Heart trouble!

Peter watched them happily from the door. He waved at them and received a gratitude nod from Neal. He just grinned at being able to give the conman a little happiness after all he had been through. He saw them depart and felt his chest vibrate at the same time. His phone was ringing with an unknown number… "Hello?"

"Hi Peter, it's Sara. Am I interrupting?"

"Sara! It's so nice to hear from you! How are you?" said Peter genuinely happy to hear her voice

"I'm good thanks, London is not as exciting as New York, not so many criminals here but I'll survive" she said

Peter chuckled "certainly not many Caffrey's over there, huh?" he said

She sighed "Certainly not… how's Neal doing?"

"Um, he's… surviving" said Peter unsure of how much he should reveal to Sara

"Peter, what's wrong?"

"Haven't you talked to him lately?" Peter asked, maybe she could help with his mood

"Um, no. We had a little disagreement…" she sounded uncomfortable

"Look, I won't meddle in your personal life but I think he would appreciate hearing from you. No matter what happened between the two of you, I think he can use a friend. He's been a little off lately. Give him a call whenever you feel like it" suggested Peter

"Ok, I will…" she said, now feeling concerned about Neal

"So what can I do for you? I'm guessing you didn't call to see if Neal was ok?" asked Peter

"No, I need to ask you a favor. Could you help me find my mother's death certificate?" she asked

Peter was not expecting that "Sure… can I ask why?"

"Oh it's just that apparently, my mom owned a real estate property in Islington, which was inherited to my sister and me, but her will said that we couldn't claim it until I turned 31, which is gonna happen in a couple of days. And I need her certificate in order to claim it. She was a little eccentric" Sara explained with a tone of embarrassment in her voice.

"Islington?" asked Peter curious

"Yeah, it's a district in London. I have no idea why my mother would buy a piece of land there" explained Sara

"Hmm I see. Well, sure you can count on it, just give me Mrs Ellis first name" said Peter

"Actually, she never changed her name to Ellis, she remained Andrews. Adrianne Andrews" said Sara

"Andrews?" Peter thought for a moment thinking where he had heard that name recently… "Ok, got it. Anything else?"

"Yeah… I need a copy of the official report from the FBI about my sister's disappearance" said Sara in a small voice

"Sara, I didn't know that, I'm sorry. When did that happen?" said Peter sympathetic

"Don't worry, it was a long time ago but they never found her. I don't know if she's still..." Sara cleared her throat clearly having trouble saying this "if she is still alive, so all I have is the official FBI report to claim my mom's heritage on her behalf"

"Ok, give me the name and I'll send both documents ASAP" said Peter

"Emily Clarice Ellis" said Sara softly

"Ok, Sara, got it. I'm glad you trust me with this personal stuff. If you come home on Christmas, be sure you have a place on the Burke's table, alright?" said Peter gently

"Thank you Peter. Gotta go…" and she hung up.

* * *

**Whew! Long chapter and lots of thingys happening! LOL - You like it so far? Should I continue? :) Please review! **


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

The flight over the Manhattan sky was amazing. Neal and Clarice had a great time together. Those 30 minutes seemed like hours of laughter and enjoyment. Neal helped her step down the helicopter and impulsively, she threw her arms around his neck

"Thank you so much, Neal!" she told him very excited hugging him tightly and giving him a peck on the lips with a huge grin afterwards "Can you take me for ice cream now? C'mon, I know the best place in town!" she said immediately pulling his hand

So much happiness in one person was a novelty for Neal. He couldn't help but compare… The only time he had experienced this much amazement for the things he did and so much pure energy and spontaneous cravings, had been with Kate… Sara was so much more sophisticated, self-controlled and hard to impress. She had a very playful and unexpected side too, goofy even sometimes, but it was a rare thing to see, only lately had she been showing it more. Too bad she had to leave just when Neal had reached that soft goofy center in Sara's universe. On the other hand, Sara was a challenge for Neal, it wasn't like she didn't show her delight with him but she wasn't easily swept of her feet, he had to work hard to achieve it and he had to really step up his game to keep up with her and that was novelty for him as well. Being used to having every girl at his feet was tiresome for Neal so he enjoyed the challenge Sara put him through and the intellectual debates they had, how strong yet playful moral boundaries she had… and her smile, her long legs, her perfume, her hands on his chest, her neck, her... 'Damn I miss her' he thought while he tried to keep up with the little energy ball that was Clarice Andrews.

They had a wonderful evening out, stealing kisses and hugs here and there while they walked along Times Square until they stopped in front of the Tickets parlor right in the middle of Broadway and Times Square. They sat down drinking hot chocolate.

"So tell me conman… tell me a secret" said Clarice playfully

"Just one? I have many" teased Neal

She smiled "I can imagine! But tell me just one, something that you're proud of"

"Well, it's not so much of a secret but it's unknown to you and I'm very proud of it… I love painting" said Neal casually

"Painting? As in houses or in canvas?" she joked with him

Neal chuckled "Definitely not houses!"

She took his hand and analyzed it, caressing each knuckle and turning it around to run a finger through the soft surface of his palm. It was a very well groomed hand with almost no calluses yet very masculine, big and strong with all the right veins protruding in the right places "Such a beautiful hand with no calluses… definitely not a house painter" she said smiling sweetly at him

Neal looked at her with dilated pupils after the erotic little massage she had given to his hand "I do sculptures as well" he said as if trying to defend his very groomed hands

"Oh? Do you sculpt from live models? Like those exhibited in fancy Italian museums?" she said seductively running a hand on his soft hair.

Neal smirked "I do… and damn good forgeries too" he said raising his eyebrows playfully

Clarice laughed "you're such a bad boy!"

They laughed together and suddenly she shivered "You cold?" asked Neal

"Yeah, a little, I can't believe November it's only starting and it is awfully cold already!" she protested

"Here, let me help" Neal said hugging her and running a hand in her back repeatedly as to warm her up.

She turned to look at him mischievously "That helps but I'm sure those hands can do better"

Neal almost blushed at her innuendo but just smirked and took her hand to pull her up and start walking to June's.

They walked in silence until they arrived at June's "Holly shit, you live here?!" said Clarice flabbergasted.

Neal took her to his loft and she was even more in shock at the view from the terrace. Neal walked with her with a couple of wine glasses "Are you sure you're still a convict? Is this part of your FBI deal?" she asked still in awe

He chuckled "No, I just got lucky. June, my land lady is a very generous person" explained Neal

"Well, let's toast for good luck. I hope some of it rubs on me" she said running a finger on his chest

Neal smiled "I'm sure that can be arranged" he said coming closer to her and without further invitation, she just threw herself at him in a very passionate kiss. Hands started roaming and clothes began being pulled away but the cold weather didn't allow them to remain outdoors "We better get inside" he suggested in between kisses

Once inside, she restarted the kissing assault and pushed him to sit on a chair next to the table and straddled him. Neal was a little surprised. Sweet Clarice seemed to have versatile preferences. "We have a little unfinished business" she whispered in his ear and he understood now, remembering their little adventure in the swing at Gramercy Park, being in the same seating arrangements.

Neal's hands were indeed very soft and 'artistic'. He proved to her how good he was at 'sculpting' by making her scream in ecstasy just by using them on certain parts of her body "Oh my God, I love your hands" she said in between gasps, making Neal laugh

But she wasn't done with him so she stepped down from the chair, still with wobbly legs and took his hand leading him to the bed.

But Neal froze when he saw her walking to his bed. In the dim light of the night with only a lamp on, he could see her red hair and the way her body moved to the bed. It was an all too familiar scenario... one that he remembered very well… He gasped and felt a deep pain in his chest at the violent intake of air received by his lungs. The air was suddenly too cold and the floor felt shaky.

"Neal?" he heard in the distance and saw her figure sitting there in his bed waiting for him, motioning for him to come like a mermaid would do. His mermaid. His Ariel…

Flashback…

_"Neal, come here…" motioned Sara with a finger sitting in the edge of his bed with a beautiful sexy smile, her hair wild around her shoulders and wearing very nice turquoise bra and panties_

_"You look like a mermaid" whispered Neal walking slowly to her_

_She chuckled and blushed at the same time "I'll be your Ariel if you'll be my Prince Eric" she joked_

_Neal grinned and started singing "sha la la la my oh my, you're gonna kiss the girl, you're gonna kiss the girl"_

_Sara laughed "I can't believe you know that song! It was my favorite movie as a little girl"_

_Neal finally reached her and gently stepped between her legs grasping her chin and kissing her softly "YOU are my favorite girl"_

_Sara blushed entirely now "damn it, Caffrey, you sure know how to charm a girl"_

_Neal started kissing her neck "You are more beautiful than Ariel and I'm totally under your spell" he said in between kisses_

_Sara moaned and reached to find his mouth for a brief kiss. She took his face in her hands "Thank you, Neal" she said with a small voice full of emotion and watery eyes_

_"Hey, what's wrong? Don't cry" said Neal worried at her watery eyes. Sara almost never cried!_

_"I'm sorry. I hate being like this but that damn movie just reminded me happy childhood memories" she said sniffing a little_

_Neal sat next to her and pulled her on his lap "Tell me about it, repo" he said gently hugging her and kissing her forehead_

_"It's just that… my sister and I, used to fantasize about Prince Eric all the time" she said laughing sheepishly "and I never thought he could actually be real" she admitted looking into his eyes "you even look like him for God's sakes!"_

_Neal smiled and kissed her softly. She leaned on his chest and continued "I wish she was around now so I could brag about dating my own prince Eric" she said giggling_

_"I love hearing you giggle, it's such a rare and precious thing" Neal said tenderly_

_Sara turned to look at him frowning but hiding a smile "Stop being so damn adorable and make love to me already, will you?" she said pushing him to the bed_

_"Princess, your wish is my command" were Neal's final words before starting an intense night of lots of love-making and sweet words._

End of flashback…

"Neal? Hello? Are you okay?" Clarice said now standing in front of him, half dressed with her hands on her hips

Neal came out of his reverie, all traces of arousal gone. He wanted to cry after remembering that night with Sara, it had been a week before she left for London. They were so good together, he thought.

"I'm sorry, Clarice. I can't… I don't know what's happening to me… I just…" he couldn't find words for the first time and just looked down very embarrassed

Clarice took a look at him and pulled his chin up to look him in the eye. He held her gaze for a second and then looked down as if her eyes burned. She frowned… Neal seemed to be a very troubled man with more secrets than having artistic talents… she sighed… "It's ok, I don't like it but I think I understand. Seems like this is not gonna happen between us"

"I'm sorry Clarice. Please forgive me" he said concerned

"Don't worry, at least I wasn't left, um, unfinished…" she said a little embarrassed looking at Neal's condition in his pants.

Neal just gave her a pained expression but remained silent.

"Ok, so I better get home. Can you call me a cab?" she asked

"Yes, of course" said Neal going for his phone to call the cab. When he took the device he cursed under his breath.

"What is it?" she asked while getting dressed

"Oh nothing, just a reminder that popped up here in my phone" he said snoozing such reminder to see it and wallow in it later… it read 'Sara's birthday coming up in two days!' and it had her picture attached to it.

Neal walked Clarice to the cab and waved her goodbye. He remained on the sidewalk until the cab wasn't visible anymore. He felt terrible at having treated Clarice the way he did. She was a very nice girl, what the hell was his problem? This didn't even happen when Kate died. He had been perfectly capable of sleeping with Sara afterwards and before Sara, with Alex! So why not now? He didn't understand and he felt frustrated and angry with himself.

That night, Neal went to bed alone, looking at Sara's picture and taking matters in to his hands, so to speak. The previous foreplay hadn't gone unnoticed by his body and he needed the release, which came very quickly motivated by anger, frustration and pain. He fell asleep curled up on his side with a knot in his throat, pain in his chest and a terrible headache. Thankfully, tomorrow was Saturday and he could sleep until very late. He needed to shut down the world for a little while and dig deep into his feelings, think thoroughly and decide one of two choices: Fight or fly. Fight to keep Sara close or fly free and try to rebuild his life with someone else…

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**So, Sara's birthday is coming up... what do you think Neal should do? Please review! :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**A few notes before the chapter:**

**Flower: I changed the rating, thanks for suggesting, wouldn't want to corrupt any children without warning hehehe But don't worry, writing that stuff is just not my thing, foreplay is as far as I'm gonna go because I'm just not good at that other thing... hehe And also, I believe Neal did sleep with Alex before Sara, or better said, 'swam' naked with her to get the information on the music box, remember? ;)**

**Blake: You made me laugh at your comments! Too bad you don't like Sara so much but yes, I'm a Sara-Neal fan, sorry! But I promise you'll like her, at least in my story, so please keep reading ;-)**

**And thank you so much for all your reviews and suggestions! I truly appreciate them! **

**On with the chapter...**

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**Chapter 8**

It was Saturday noon and an incredible annoying noise disturbed Neal's peaceful slumber: Riiiing

He reached for his phone and mumbled "Hello?"

"Oh hey, are you okay? Were you sleeping?!" came Peter's incredulous voice

"It's Saturday, Peter, I don't have to get up early, do I?" said Neal rubbing the sleep from his eyes

"So rough night huh? Clarice seems to be full of energy" said Peter with a huge grin

Neal groaned inwardly "You are a pervert, Peter. Is there a reason you called?" he said annoyed

"Yeah. How about we go to a Mets game tonight. You and me, grab some beers and just have fun. Unless you are going out with Clarice again?" said Peter cheerfully

"Don't you wanna take Elizabeth to the movies or something? And what could possibly make you think that a basketball game would appeal to me?" said Neal now fully awake and going to pee

"Are you peeing while talking to me?!" said Peter in shock

"Your detective skills leave me speechless, Agent Burke" deadpanned Neal not caring

"Ugh, disgusting… anyway, Elizabeth went to LA and I already got the tickets, so I'm picking you up at 6 so we can go have dinner together and then to the game, got it?" commanded Peter

"Do I have a choice?" challenged Neal like only a teenager would do

"Of course not. Don't forget to flush it"

"Yes grandpa"

"Hey! Watch the attitude young man!"

"Bye Peter"

What the hell was up with Neal's prepubescent antics? Thought Peter. He sure was usually difficult but he was being even more so now. He sighed… it was gonna be a long night.

The rest of the day for Neal, consisted on swimming for a while, eating a croissant and coffee and painting 'nonsense' in his canvas, as Mozzie would say.

He kept thinking about Sara and the angst he felt last night. He took his phone and saw that Clarice had texted him, it read "Hello handsome. I hope you're feeling better today. Gimme a call when you feel like it. Thank you for last night, it was amazing. XOXO"

He sighed… this was insane. It was obvious that his feelings for Sara were still strong and by the looks of it, going even stronger now. But Neal felt afraid that she didn't feel the same way and in fact, she was the one that demanded to feel free so it was obvious she didn't miss him like he did… still, on Monday, the day after tomorrow, was November 11th, Sara's birthday and a very special day for her. He knew how much she cared about it and being alone in a city didn't exactly mean having people celebrate the blessed event because they didn't know her that well. Or maybe she did have someone who would fill her office with flowers, take her to a nice dinner, some dancing, give her a thoughtful present, a nice massage even and then make love to her… that's what he would do… he felt anger rising at the mere thought of someone else doing the same for her. He splashed paint in the canvas angrily… this is what Pollock must have felt when he painted, he thought.

He started pacing around and suddenly decided he needed a distraction. He took the stairs down and saw Byron's old piano lurking in the dark… 'I'm sure June wouldn't mind' he said to himself and went to sit there. It had been a long time since he had played but his fingers felt an aching need to run around the keys. He started by playing random notes and nonsense until his fingers found themselves capable of tuning in with his emotions and he started playing a very slow and melancholic version of Dean Martin's "Return to me"… soon, he started humming and singing along with eyes closed.

Suddenly he opened his eyes and started laughing at himself… how pathetic and cliché was he being? Here he was singing alone such a corny song barefeet, only wearing sweatpants while drinking wine on an old piano. He laughed out loud and continued playing speeding up the rhythm. If Sara could only see him… she would laugh at him and then he would stop her laughter by kissing her passionately. Damn he had it really bad. Hopeless! He decided it was enough of that and stood up only to hear clapping.

"Bravo! Beautiful!" said June looking at him lovingly

"Um, June, I thought you weren't home" said Neal embarrassed

"Neal, darling, I didn't know you played? I would have made you play for me every night like Byron did if I had known!" said June smiling broadly

Neal blushed slightly "Yeah I dabble" he became aware of his state of undress and blushed more "I'm sorry June" he said signaling his lack of clothes

"Oh sweetheart, you don't offend anyone" she said winking "don't you have plans to go out today?"

"Yeah, I'm going to a basketball game with Peter but I was just killing time" he said distractedly

June frowned. Neal killing time? She noticed the pale look on his face and he looked kind of skinnier too "You ok, Neal?" she asked putting a motherly hand on his forehead

"Yeah just a little off lately" he said

"I noticed the lady you brought last night didn't stay. Things didn't work out?" June asked and Neal had a look of embarrassment. June had always treated him like a son but she was no typical mom, she used to be very straight forward and nothing scared her. She had married a conman after all.

He shrugged, there was no use in hiding things from June "She is nice but…" he trailed off

"But…? She is no Sara?" June offered with a sad smile

Neal sighed in defeat. How could she read him so well? "No…" he whispered

"Oh Neal, be patient my dear. If I learned something out of life is that, whatever dreams and desires you may have, you'll only get what is meant for you. So if Sara is meant to be with you, you'll be together again somehow, so you might as well enjoy yourself with what you have at the moment. Stop being so rational. Use that brain of yours for the heists and not for the heart" She said smiling

June was quite a wise woman, Neal thought. "Thanks June" he said before going back up to his loft.

Neal decided he could have a good time with Clarice but without rushing things. And on the other hand, whatever Sara felt for him right now, there was no reason for him to not let her know how he felt, Sara had been through a lot with him and for him, he really cared for her. So he decided to go all the way for her birthday, he just had to make a few calls.

At 5:30 pm he took a shower and dressed casually in dark blue jeans, a white t-shirt and while rummaging through his closet for a sweater, he found an old navy blue NYU hoodie that probably belonged to Byron. He smiled and decide to put it on, he was only going to a basketball game anyway, no need to dress up, plus he figured he would blend in better. Peter arrived sharp at six and let himself in "Neal!" he called for him

Neal came out of his walk-in closet "Hi Peter, right on time" he said smiling brightly

Peter stared at him in shock and with his mouth hanging open a little "What?" Neal asked frowning at Peter's expression.

"You look 16. I didn't even know you owned that kind of clothes" said Peter still in shock at the younger man

Neal chuckled "Dress for the occasion, right? Never been to a basketball game before but I figure this is appropriate?" he asked genuinely

"Yeah of course. Let's go… we make a cute couple, looking like father and son" said Peter teasing and squeezing Neal's shoulder. Neal grinned and thought that this might not be such a bad evening.

The game was exciting. The Knicks won against the Lakers and Peter was very happy saying all kinds of insults to a certain Kobe Bryant, which Neal found funny. Peter explained every play to Neal and he threw at him all this numbers, rules and statistics about the game. He truly was a math geek even with sports. Neal enjoyed seeing Peter so relaxed and indulged him asking questions about the game and even cheering when there was a good play. The game ended and they left the Madison Square Garden happily. Peter adjusted Neal's coat pulling out his hoodie on the back and patting his shoulder "there you go" he said in a very fatherly tone. Neal blushed at the gesture, he was definitely not used to this treatment… he couldn't help but remember James doing something similar not so long ago when he told him "That's my boy" when he forged the Duvois sculpture. He smiled shyly "Thanks, Peter"

And old lady dressed with a jersey bigger than herself approached them and said "What a lovely thing. Who says grown-up children can't enjoy a Saturday night out with their dads, huh? Congratulations sir!" she told Peter and then kept walking

Peter stood there speechless convincing himself that it was the damn hoodie and nothing else. Neal just chuckled and patted Peter's back saying "Thanks old man, I enjoyed this evening out" he said grinning.

Peter muttered under his breath "I'm-not-that-old-to-be-your-father" and grudgingly continued walking.

After the game, they went for burgers at Mickey Mantle's near Central Park on Peter's insistence. Neal complained that they served nothing but greasy food but Peter shut him up by saying he had to try the food first before complaining. Neal dragged his feet but actually enjoyed the huge hamburger. Of course he didn't finish it, being too much for him.

"Aren't you gonna finish that?" asked Peter in a scolding tone

Neal grinned "Are you gonna make me finish my dinner or else I'm grounded?"

Peter just grunted and changed the subject "So how's it going with Nicolle?"

That question erased Neal's grin immediately "We're taking things slow" he said looking at his napkin and motioning the waiter over

"Can I have some coffee please?" requested Neal politely making the young lady blush

"Oh no no, you have to try the vanilla ice cream here, it's the best!" said Peter excitedly

Neal look disgusted "Seriously? After all this food you still want ice cream?!"

"Yes, bring us two" Peter told to the waiter

"And coffee please. And do you happen to have a pepto milkshake?" joked Neal with an adorable smile making the girl blush even more

Peter just shook his head and chuckled at Neal's ability to melt every girl he encountered "Are you still hung up on Sara?" he asked

Neal was taken off balance "Huh?"

"You heard me. Are you hung up on Sara and that's why you're taking things slow with Nicolle?" Peter said patiently

Neal sighed in defeat. He knew deflecting on the subject would only make his questioning further and being Peter, the archeologist, it could get really awkward, so he had to give a small version of the truth that convinced Peter enough to let the subject go "I miss Sara, a lot. But things between us are not in the best terms so…" he said trailing off sadly and hoping that was enough to quench Peter's curiosity

Peter nodded "I see… Sara is very hermetic too about her feelings for you so she must miss you too but being so far away… I mean it's gotta be hard" explained Peter casually

"Wait, how do you know Sara is hermetic?" asked Neal curious now

Peter looked busted "Um, I spoke to her yesterday. She called in a favor" he explained

"What favor? Something work-related?" asked Neal a little hurt

Peter realized his mistake and quickly wiped his mouth clearing his throat "Um, she needed some paperwork to finish some family legal process" tried Peter nonchalantly

Neal frowned "Is she in trouble?"

"Not at all! She, um, told me her mother left her some heritage that required some papers to be able to claim it" Peter said

Neal thought for a moment. She could have called him to ask such personal favor but instead she chose Peter.

Peter saw Neal's discomfort and added "She also needed the FBI report of her sister's disappearance and that's why she called me" he said reading Neal's hurt look and trying to justify her actions

At that, Neal looked up surprised "Have you found that file?" he asked anxiously

"Yeah but it was on the DC office so they're sending it to me on Monday" Peter explained "Did you know about her sister?"

"Yeah, she told me a while back. They never found her" said Neal now determined to see that file as soon as it arrived on the mail on Monday

They were quiet for a while until Peter broke the silence "Sara said she might be coming home for Christmas" he said

Neal looked at him with a flicker on his eyes "Really?"

"Yeah, I invited her for dinner. I mean she has no family here and I'm sure Elizabeth would be thrilled at having a full table for Christmas. You're invited as well of course" said Peter warmly

Neal smiled briefly "Thank you, Peter" and then a mischievous smile crept up in his face "Will Santa be leaving presents under the tree?" he said teasing

Peter chuckled "That depends on how good or naughty you were and judging by that little anklet on your feet I'm not so sure…"

Neal groaned "Aw c'mon Peter! Not fair!" Neal complained like he was 7 years old

They laughed some more while eating ice cream, which was pretty good after all. Later that night, Peter dropped Neal at June's with a full stomach and a nice smile. Mission accomplished, he thought. Emo Neal was no longer there at least for now.

Around midnight and ready to go to bed, Neal grabbed his phone and e-mailed Sara…

From: Neal Caffrey

To: Sara Ellis

Subject: Naughty or good?

_Hi Sara,_

_Peter told me Santa Claus might be dropping a very nice present under his tree this year. I'm really hoping that present includes your smile and the sparkle of your eyes because I really miss them. So I'm working really hard to stay on the good boys' list…_

_I really hope I can catch a cello concert tomorrow. Best thing I've ever seen… I'll be there at the usual time…_

_Miss you._

Neal clicked on the Send button and then turned off the light. He felt better. Despite Peter's annoying methods, he was really grateful to have him. Peter Burke was one of the best things that ever happened to him. With that in mind he smiled and dozed off in a peaceful slumber…


	9. Chapter 9

**Short chapter and I'm itchy with mischievousness hehehe**

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**Chapter 9**

Sara Ellis, currently London resident and CEO of Sterling Bosh in that same city, had developed a very serious case of workaholism and vigorexic combo. That's right, she needed the distraction and the best way to do it was to work really hard, both mind and body, so even on Sundays she worked-out. She was just finishing her morning jog in the park when her phone vibrated indicating an incoming email, she opened it and saw that it was Neal's; she couldn't help the intake of breath that clouded her lungs.

She took a seat on a bench and began reading… when she was done, she had a stupid grin plastered on her face. Only Caffrey could do that to her even from overseas. She felt tempted to call him knowing that it was around midnight in NY but decided to wait.

Sara had been having mixed feelings around Neal, of course she missed him terribly but she also was happy with her life choice. She was doing great on her job, her whole staff respected and admired her. She felt very at ease and powerful when she was leading board meetings and the recovery rates had been going high the past months. The global HQ was very pleased with her performance and she was pleased with herself. If her dad could see her now, he probably wouldn't be such a prick saying little girls aren't meant to be in man's pants. Sometimes, in her darkest thoughts, she was glad that Emily had run from home, she understood her need to escape their dad's constant bullying. Sara always fought her own territory and never let him crush her spirit, she got the scholarship to Stamford University and mastered in Economics top of her class. Too bad her dad died before that and never got to see her reach that glory. Her mom was always there for her though and she teamed up with Sara every time she did something great like being high school's track captain and the best athlete there was, learning to play cello and 3 languages, plus volunteering for Greenpeace on summers, etc., everything there was to be done, she did it. Sara just grew-up being an overachiever, secretly trying to make her dad proud or at least, trying to make him ok with the fact that they never had a son. Her mom would always say that she was so much more than a son could ever be but Sara was just never satisfied and even less so, when her mother started doing weird things like traveling for long periods by herself and drinking too much… and then there was that stupid car accident where both her parents had died.

She sighed… too many thoughts troubling her mind on a Sunday morning. She put away her phone and headed home to have some breakfast.

She went grosery shopping and bought some candles and a nice bottle of Bordeux. She wanted to make a nice cello concert for Neal. At first, she took Neal to be just like all men, always looking at her over their shoulders, thinking less of her because she was a woman. But in time, she realized that Neal didn't care at all about authority and hierarchy, he was a free spirit bad boy who valued and praised women like very precious creatures, not delicate at all, just beautiful, powerful and brave. When she found out what Neal had done for Kate, she was in shock, she thought those things only happened in movies but Neal seemed devoted to Kate and not interested at all on proving his manhood. Neal was even more delicate than her sometimes - she chuckled at this thought-, but she loved how Neal never even thought of using physical violence, he always aimed for charm and dialogue to get him out of trouble, whereas she carried a baton in her purse. They made quite a pair like that.

This couple of weeks not talking to Neal, had made Sara realize how good she felt with herself. She became aware of the fact that she felt scared of falling in love with Neal and love made her vulnerable and she had learned that being vulnerable made you weak and inferior… she didn't feel comfortable with that. It's what her father had always made her feel so she learned to grew detached from her father to avoid pain and consequently, she learned to grew detached from all men. She wasn't ready to feel so vulnerable with Neal and that's why she decided to run. But these past weeks made her realize that she wasn't weak or inferior and now she felt capable enough of at least being friends with Neal and then… well, only time would tell.

After grosery shopping, she took a long bubble bath and decided to watch and old movie while eating spaghetti. She usually never cooked, God knows what kind of catastrophic disaster could happen if she did but this evening, she decided to make an easy recipe that Neal taught her and she was happy with the taste.

It was almost eight o'clock when she woke up from a nap and got up quickly to prepare for her concert. She lit up candles around her apartment, put on flowers and the bottle of Bordeux with two glasses served, one for her and one for her 'audience'. She dressed up with an elegant long dark purple dress that hugged all her curves. She applied some make up and put on high heels. She went right on time to turn on her laptop and the Skype application. She was glad Neal wasn't on yet so she left it pointing to the glasses of wine and the cello, stepping out of the camera angle. She knew she was being a little too theatrical but she just felt like doing it. She was that happy.

Sara kept constantly staring at the screen waiting for Neal to appear, it was already 7:58 pm. Neal was usually very punctual.

Suddenly, there he was. His beautiful face showed up in the screen and she saw him gasp at the sight in his own screen "Sara?" he asked uncertain and she was smiling widely pleased at the look on his face. Wait until you see me, Caffrey, she thought feeling very confident now. She was getting ready to make her grand entrance, just like she would do if she was to give a recital at the Symphony.

And right when she was about to step in sight, Sara heard a knock on Neal's door. He turned in the direction of the door… "Neal? Are you there? It's Clarice" heard Sara from afar and saw Neal get a panicked look on his face and he stood up to open the door.

Sara got close to the screen trying uselessly to see where Neal had gone but she only heard the muffled conversation…

Neal: Hi… what are you doing here?

Woman: I was worried, you didn't answer your phone and I just thought you might gotten sick or something. You weren't looking so well the other night. Is this a bad time?

Neal: I'm a… little busy right now. But thanks for worrying though.

Woman: Ok… you sure you don't want me to stay?

Neal: No, no, please don't worry, I'll be fine.

Woman: Ok… give me a call ok? You still owe me

Neal: he he alright. Take care

Neal closed the door and when he got back to his laptop, he saw a breath-taking gorgeous Sara with a raised eyebrow and pursed lips. I am in so much deep trouble, he thought.

"Who is Clarice?" she asked looking not happy at all

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**Holly cow! Even I'm scared of a not-happy Sara! LOL **


	10. Chapter 10

Another little piece building up to the plot points... I hope you like!

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**Chapter 10**

"Who is Clarice?" Sara asked looking not happy at all

"Hi… you look beautiful" said Neal with a dashing smile

Sara pursed her lips "Thanks. Who is Clarice?" she asked again

Neal sighed "She's just a friend"

Those words stung like the devil in Sara's heart. She knew that Neal not even bothering to make up a story about this girl was because she was more than a friend, most surely a fuck friend at least for now. Truth was, she felt like she got kicked in the stomach. Here she was all dressed up and excited to skype with Neal and he was having friends, -female friends-, whose familiarity allowed them to suggest spending the night with him. Of course she wasn't going to show how hurt she felt, it would make her look weak and pathetic actually… so today's special in the Sara Ellis menu of emotions would be: Sarcasm. "I see… just a 'friend' who happens to be worried about you since the other night"

Neal frowned and leaned closer to the screen crossing his arms "I'm not the one who usually runs with their ex-fiancées when breaking up" he said, voice dripping with sarcasm as well.

"Oh, so this is revenge?" Sara asked now with raised eyebrows, anger starting to rear its ugly head

Neal just gave her a sad smile and leaned back in his chair again "Of course not" he said with a defeated voice

"Then what is it Neal?" Sara asked sitting down herself and crossing her arms in a defying posture

"You asked for space and I'm just trying to figure out how to do it" said Neal sincerely

Sara laughed ironically "Oh such kindness… and how's it going? Tell me about your achievements, Neal"

"Sara, I…" he took a deep breath shaking his head trying to find words "You are the one who left and the one who asked me to stop calling you every day! But that is your decision, not mine. It's what you want, not what I want. And believe me, I've tried to get you out of my head but I just can't" he finished now standing up and pacing back and forth, incapable of looking at her

Sara was expecting another sarcastic poisonous retort but she didn't expect to see Neal so vulnerable. She could deal with feisty, not vulnerable. She just sat there in silence looking at him, looking perfect, a little thinner but gorgeous nonetheless, wishing it were her fingers running on his hair and not him doing it in such a desperate way.

After a minute of silence, he stopped pacing and came back to the chair. He grabbed the laptop screen with two hands as he would do to her face if she was physically there. He looked straight into her eyes and said "Sara, what do you want from me?"

She instinctively pulled a little back feeling intimidated by his piercing blue eyes and fixed stare "Mm?" was all she could muster

"You asked the same question to me four years ago and I wasn't able to give you a straight answer until the Empire State. I'm asking the same thing now" he said and he ran a finger on the screen where her face was. He smiled briefly "You truly look stunning tonight. I wish I could just…" he sighed getting restless.

Sara just remained silent. Speechless actually…

"Tell me, Sara. Should I wait for you? 'cause believe me, I'm a one-girl man but I need to know what do you expect from me so that I can build on a possibility in the future or start rebuilding my life again, today" he said with determination yet so much tenderness that almost made Sara cry right there

"Damn you Caffrey…" was all she could mutter while looking down

"What was that?" he asked not sure that he heard well

Sara was torn. She had never felt such fear of losing someone. People left her without warning, her sister, her parents… but now Neal was giving her an advanced notification and even more so, a choice.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. When she opened them, she saw the face of the man who was capable of pushing all her buttons for better or for worse. She knew that if she couldn't make up her mind at this moment, at least she could be sincere with her feelings and not feel ashamed. Not with Neal… "Neal, I don't know" she said shyly

"Ok…" was all he said and pulled back from the screen again

She looked at him desperately trying to make him say all she couldn't. C'mon Neal, you've always been the brave on in this relationship, she thought. "Ok?!" was all she managed to ask

"What do you want me to say, Sara? It's not like I can offer you an incentive here. It's up to you" he said carelessly

"Don't turn things on me, Caffrey. You are the one pushing me to say what I want from you and I'm being honest! I need to think, I don't know!" she said now raising her voice as she usually did when getting nervous or anxious

"That's ok. I'm just a guy with a 2-mile radius in Manhattan. When I could have had freedom and wealth, I just couldn't make you a part of it. Now it's your turn to take the lead" he said matter-of-factly

"Oh please! You weren't going to even say goodbye to me when you had the treasure!" she protested

"It wouldn't have been fair to you, Sara. And I'm glad I didn't ask you. I can't make you cross a line that you cannot come back from, right?" he explained

Sara sighed heavily "This isn't taking us anywhere, Neal" and when she saw that Neal just shrugged and didn't say anything, she continued "I want you to be a part of my life, Neal. You're just gonna have to give me some time to decide in which form". There, she said it truthfully enough to keep her satisfied and not make her feel emotionally naked

Sara saw a small flicker of pain in Neal's eyes but as the master of disguise he was, he didn't let it show, he just nodded.

"I'm sorry, I mean if this Clarice girl is someone you've found who makes you feel good, I don't want to be unfair… but I'm just asking for a little time, ok? Can you gimme that?" she asked gently and hesitantly

Neal smiled tightly but the pain flicker in his eyes disappeared "I can give you so much more but yes, if that's what you want for now…" he said in a sexy whisper which made Sara's skin crawl.

"Thank you" she whispered timidly

"So, were you jealous just now?" said Neal regaining his good ol' playful side

Sara glared playfully at him "what do you think, you pest?"

Neal grinned "I think you look even more beautiful when you're jealous. Your skin tone gets all heated up and your eyes acquire this musky shade… it's actually the same look you have when you clim…"

"Shut up, Caffrey. Didn't we have a concert to attend to?" she said not letting him finish and changing the subject before Neal's words made her suggest having cyber-sex.

"Yes, but now that you decided to have this little conversation… about the papers you asked from Peter… why didn't you ask me?" he said with a hint of a hurt look on his face

"Because Peter is more handsome…" she deadpanned and burst-out laughing at Neal's look. "Because Peter has access to these types of documents, Neal! Why else would I have requested them to him?" she added not laughing anymore but still with a patronizing smile

"Very funny" he said almost pouting

"Aw… you know what, why don't you take my sister's report in an envelope, add a sonnet within a postcard and then seal it by licking it sexily, take a picture of that precious moment and then send it to me?" Sara said teasing him

Neal laughed "careful what you wish for, baby" he said

"Bring it on, baby!" she said smiling widely

"Speaking of my sister, please find new friends whit other names, will you? Clarice reminds me too much of her" said Sara a little disgusted

Neal got serious "Why?"

"Emily's middle name is Clarice. Thought I had told you?" she asked pensively

"Um, no you hadn't…" said Neal panicking just a little bit. Another coincidence maybe?

"So, how about Christmas?" said Sara interrupting Neal's thoughts and getting close to the screen again with a cute little smile

"What about Christmas?" asked Neal a little confused

"Can I give you an answer by then? In person?" said Sara smiling

He smiled too and got closer to the screen as well "In person, yes, must definitely. I'm sick of this screen coming between us, it's worse than prison!" he exclaimed exaggerating his pained expression playfully

She just nodded and stood up "Ready for the concert?"

"Please… can I have some of that Bordeaux?" asked Neal

"Yes of course" she said arranging her instrument

"It's nice to see you're investing your big paycheck wisely" he said referring to her expensive wine choice

Sara smiled and just said "Shhh" indicating she was going to start her little private cello concert. Neal took his laptop to his bed, took his shoes off and sat there leaning his back on the headrest. He literally sat back and relaxed, enjoying the view, the sound, the vibe… they were good together, he thought. Hopefully they could stay like that.

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**What do you think? Your comments are most welcome! **


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Sara went to bed that night feeling happy, finally at ease regarding her feelings for Neal. She had a month to decide what to do and he had assured he would wait for her to decide. Her birthday was coming up in a few hours and it was starting pretty good already.

November 11th, 6 am and someone was ringing Sara's doorbell "What the hell?" she said rubbing her eyes. With her recently acquired vigorexia, she normally got up even earlier to go for a run but thanks to Neal she had slept like a baby so the sound startled her. She put on a robe and got up to open the door.

"Good morning ma'am. These are for you" said a smiling boy carrying a huge bouquet of purple tulips

Sara gasped and motioned him to place them on the dinner table happily "Thank you!"

She looked closely to them and they were exquisite and so many of them! She looked for the bottom and saw a small envelope with her name, in the inside it read:

_Birthday girl,_

_Wanna go out with me and celebrate tonight? 8 pm – Kensington gardens. Bring your phone._

_And before you even think of going to work, I called in for you and nobody is expecting you to go so just go back to sleep until your next present arrives at around 9 am or unless you get hungry of course, let me know if that happens so I can take care of it as well, wouldn't want you to burn another tea pot. _

_This day is meant for you to be treated like a princess._

_Love,_

_Neal_

Sara smiled like an idiot and obediently went back to bed and texted Neal "Just got my first present! Going to sleep now as instructed J"

In another time, she would've been offended for having him deciding for her but not today and not with Neal. He had gotten deep into her –no pun intended-, and he had earned the right to take the lead.

Neal just smiled and answered "Sleep tight. Happy birthday, princess" – He went to bed hoping everything he had planned for Sara went according to plan.

3 hours later – 9 am in London:

Doorbell again… Sara groaned and yawned getting up. She put on her robe again and went to open the door to see the 9 am surprise. She discovered a freckled woman dressed in chef's attire with a thick Irish accent "Miss Ellis, this is for you, right from Chef's Alexander Rushkind's kitchen. May I?" she asked and Sara just motioned her to come in. The freckled lady went to the table and set up a very nice and fancy breakfast consisting on a fancy-looking omelet, toast, fresh strawberries, Chai tea with milk and another flower. Once she was done setting everything up the lady just nodded politely "Enjoy" and left.

Sara went closer to the table and gasped at the sight. It looked delicious! There was another card, it read:

_Chef Alexander Rushkind happens to be a friend of mine. He cooks for the Royal family and he does a pretty fine job at it. Enjoy! _

_I'm probably asleep right now, dreaming of you. So enjoy your breakfast and get ready for your next present at around noon. Dress comfortably, no high heels please, don't want you to trip and fall over, could be painful and… wet. _

_Neal_

Sara was grinning like a fool and she dug in. Damn, it was good! She took a picture of herself being goofy and biting without elegance at her toast and sent it to Neal saying "2nd present: Yummy"

Around noon, Sara was ready, dressed in jeans and a cashmere orange sweater wearing a nice silk scarf and no high heels. She was getting restless waiting for the noon surprise. She wondered if there was gonna be another person at the door?

Noon sharp, she heard a car honking and peeked at her window seeing a black Mercedes and a smiling man with grey hair waving at her. She took her purse and coat and went down happily.

"Hello ma'am. My name is Alfred Carrington, I'll be your driver. Please" said the man politely opening the back door for her and handing her another envelope which she opened eagerly. It read:

_I know, a Mercedes ain't no Cinderella carriage but Alfred is a nice man, just don't leave your purse within his hand's reach. He will take you to run an errand for me, please?_

_Still sleeping…_

_Neal_

Sara chuckled and seated comfortably at the back of the car enjoying the quiet ride until they arrived at the London Millenium Footbridge located at the Bankside district right on the shore of the River Thames. Alfred parked the car giving Sara a golden lock and another envelope. She took it frowning "Please walk to the middle of the bridge, miss" he said.

She did as she was told and saw that there were many other locks there. She opened the envelope and read:

_Stop frowning, hear me out… The tradition is far older than one might think: it originated in Serbia during World War II, when couples from the town of Vrnjacka Banja symbolically sealed their love before the men went off to fight… Now I know I'm not going to war (although dealing with the FBI and Mozzie at the same time every day resembles being in the line of fire) and I know I'm far from earning the title of being "your man" but this is wishful thinking for a future chance of going with you to Paris and do it together at the Pont de l'Archeveche, where the tradition is most popular. This will have to do for now. If you want to, please lock it there for the both of us. It would mean the world to me as a sign of gratitude, for everything you've done for me. You and the Burke's are the main reasons I don't want to run anymore so this is the only time you'll hear (read) me saying this voluntarily: Lock me up please?_

_I hope you're not hungry yet. Alfred will take you to your 4__th__ present._

_Neal_

Sara stood there and she read the card again and again. She sighed inhaling the chilly air in her lungs and without further thinking, she locked it and snapped a picture and attached it to an email which read "3rd present: Locked. Sweet dreams, Caffrey. I'm not sleeping but dreaming nonetheless thanks to you" – she hesitated before hitting the Send button. Was it too corny? Nah… she sent it, what the hell!

She remained at the bridge for a couple more minutes and she saw that another couple arrived there to do the same she had done and kissed sweetly sealing their pact. She smiled and couldn't help but wish Neal was here. It just felt incomplete without him. She felt incomplete… she closed her eyes and went back to Alfred "ready to go Miss Ellis?" he asked opening the door again.

Alfred took her to an old-looking building downtown, where a nice Indian woman was waiting for her at the door "Miss Ellis, please come with me" she said leading Sara to a beautiful zen garden full with scents and flowers and a massage table in the middle surrounded by candles and relaxing music. Sara pulled her phone out "4th present received: OMG, a massage! I think I love you. You better be awake when I'm done here. Tired of text-monologues. Mind you, off to heaven now…"

And after 2 hours of massage and all kinds of beauty treatments, Sara was in heaven indeed and Neal started to wake up… he grabbed his phone and with each picture and each text message, he kept smiling to the point of almost dislocating his jaw. He replied "Hello beautiful! Still in heaven? I'm awake now" he texted her and went to get a shower happy as a hippo.

8:00 am at the NY FBI office…

"Morning boss. Coffee and an envelope from DC" said Diana entering Peter's office Monday morning

"Why thanks!" said Peter smiling and opening the envelope "Oh this is Sara's sister's file"

"Come again?" asked Diana curious as to why Sara's sister would be in the FBI records

"She disappeared long time ago and the FBI never found her. It's a shame" said Peter

"Oh… Was it too long ago? Because I could move some of my contacts in DC, see what can be found?" offered Diana

"Thanks, Di. It was a long time ago but I guess it wouldn't hurt double-checking. Would you mind putting a copy of this file into delivery for Sara's office in London?" said Peter

"No problem, Peter" said Diana exiting Peter's office and bumping into Neal "morning Neal, you look awfully happy today"

Neal just smiled even further "It's a good day!" he said and noticed the envelope in her hands "Is that from Sara's sister?"

Diana frowned "How do you know?"

"Peter told me. Can I see it please? I bet he made you mail it to her, didn't he? That is such a probie's job, isn't it? Let me do it for you" said Neal charmingly

Diana chuckled "Caffrey, your deceiving techniques are getting very lame but what the hell. Take it. I'm sure you'll want to send a perfumed picture of yourself along with it" teased Diana

"Oh! Nice idea!" said Neal mocking her and taking the file

He sat at his desk, opened the file, read the first line and… "Shit!"

* * *

**So, what else could Neal do for Sara's 5th, 6th, 7th presents? :) **

**Some notes:**

**- Apologies in advance for any inaccuracy of London stuff, I've never been there although I'm planning to go there SOON.**

**- Cheff's name is a fake but I just figured Neal would have such friends all over the world. The Lover's lock tradition however, is real. **

**Clarice's life is about to change in more ways than one... Stay tunned and ****Please review! **


	12. Chapter 12

**I'm baaaack! LOL - Sorry for the absence, I've been awfully busy at work and just didn't have time to update. Thank for sticking with me until now in this story, I hope it's worth the wait... **

**Previously on chapter 11...**

"Thanks, Di. It was a long time ago but I guess it wouldn't hurt double-checking. Would you mind putting a copy of this file into delivery for Sara's office in London?" said Peter

"No problem, Peter" said Diana exiting Peter's office and bumping into Neal "morning Neal, you look awfully happy today"

Neal just smiled even further "It's a good day!" he said and noticed the envelope in her hands "Is that from Sara's sister?"

Diana frowned "How do you know?"

"Peter told me. Can I see it please? I bet he made you mail it to her, didn't he? That is such a probie's job, isn't it? Let me do it for you" said Neal charmingly

Diana chuckled "Caffrey, your deceiving techniques are getting very lame but what the hell. Take it. I'm sure you'll want to send a perfumed picture of yourself along with it" teased Diana

"Oh! Nice idea!" said Neal mocking her and taking the file

He sat at his desk, opened the file, read the first line and… "Shit!"

**Chapter 12**

Neal was shocked to say the least. Emily Clarice Ellis, he read… but still, no Andrews… he continued flipping through the pages and there was a picture of a 16 year-old smiling redhead with unmistakable hazel-green eyes. "Damn, this is got to be Clarice!" he muttered.

"Neal!" called Peter from his office with his trademark two-finger gesture, making Neal close the file and going immediately to Peter's request.

Once gathered in the conference room, Peter gave a heavy sigh before placing his hands on his waist and puffing his chest ready to take the lead of the meeting "Gordon Taylor is back in town and he is gathering another crew, but this time he's got all female accomplices and we need to find out his target" said Peter putting on the screen pictures from Taylor surrounded by women outside of a nightclub. Whistles from all male agents and Diana as well, were heard around the room; the girls in the pictures were very attractive to say the least.

"Peter, he looks like he's just having fun. You know, women usually find conmen very appealing" said Neal pestering Peter just out of habit

Peter glared at him and continued ignoring him and continued "before you ask, in the previous Yankee stadium heist, he got out clean because one of accomplices declared himself guilty leaving Taylor out; seems like loyalty runs high with this guy." Peter muttered the last part knowingly and looking pointedly at Neal, who in return, just looked at his fingernails suddenly finding them very interesting.

Peter sighed and kept on clicking on more pictures getting a close up of their faces, "Taylor has been lurking around the theatre district, he seems to be hiring females, dancers or actresses. We need to get in touch with the Broadway committee to find out if there are any high-profile events happening in the upcoming days. Jones, take the lead on that one. Wilkins, get the ID's from all the women in the pictures, look for criminal records. And, Neal… We might have to get an inside man or woman actually" said Peter and then smiled with an idea

"Peter, I'm flattered that you'd think I'm pretty enough but I don't think I could pull that off" said Neal in his very characteristic Neal-way

All the agents chuckled and Peter just smirked "Alright everyone, class dismissed. Neal? My office" he said, walking to his office

"Neal, can we ask Nicolle to find a little more among her contacts? See if she knows about any special stuff happening" asked Peter testing Neal

"Um, Peter I don't think we should get her involved in this" said Neal nervously. The last thing he needed was for Nicolle to end up on Peter's radar, so far he hadn't found out about Clarice's criminal records.

"We know Taylor doesn't use guns so she'd be safe" said Peter frowning at Neal "c'mon, it would give you the chance to spend more time with her, what's wrong about that?" suggested Peter. He knew Neal was hiding something… "Unless… she goes beyond stealing the occasional wallet while dancing tango?" he said looking smug and saw Neal stopped blinking, which was a sign that he was stomped. Peter smiled crookedly and yelled, " Jones!"

"Yeah Peter" said the younger agent coming into his office

"Can you pull out information on a Nicolle Williams?" asked Peter

Jones frowned "isn't that the name you asked me to look for a couple weeks ago, Neal?"

Neal chuckled nervously "Yeah, about that. Well…" and stopped rambling when Peter grinned at him.

"Don't worry, Neal. If she helps us out on this one, we can offer her immunity" said Peter and Neal just sighed in defeat leaving Peter's office.

Neal went up to the hall outside in the elevators and grabbed his phone "May I speak to the most beautiful 31 year-old woman in the world please?" said Neal on the phone once he heard a very groggy 'hello?'

"Hi…" said Sara lazily, pretty much numb from the massage but oh so happy. She had arrived home 30 minutes ago and found a big box on her door which read "Present #5". She just grinned and went to open it. She found the most gorgeous green dress she had ever seen and a card saying…

'Green is my favorite color since I looked into your eyes. Please wear it tonight. Neal '

"Are you high or just very relaxed?" asked Neal having fun

Sara giggled "Neal, that was fantastic! Best massage I've ever had in my life!"

Neal smiled "that's because you haven't tried the Caffrey special" he said seductively

"Mmmm I might squeeze some time in my Christmas schedule for it then" she said mimicking his tone

"Happy birthday, Sara" he said sweetly

"Thank you for all this, Caffrey. I mean, everything! And the dress is just… wow" she said genuinely

"It's worthy of a princess… Thank you for putting the lock up there, by the way" Neal said a little shy

"Oh Neal, you're a hopeless romantic. I'm just glad to humor you" she said teasing him

Neal chuckled "You know you love it honeybee"

Sara laughed at the pet name and then "So, Kensington gardens at 8, huh?"

"Yes, Alfred will be there to pick you up at 7:45 so doll-up even more if possible and grab a coat, it might be chilly and I'm not there to keep you warm" said Neal a bit sad

"Ok… Neal?" she said a bit shy

"Mmm?"

"We seem to just fall into this routine all the time, don't we?" she said

"What do you mean?" he asked confused

"You. Me. You being the perfect charmer and me falling for it every time" she said. It was so much easier to accept her vulnerability over the phone.

Neal was a bit taken aback not used to hearing Sara admit that she could 'fall for him' but he played along "and what's wrong with it? It feels right" he said with humor in his voice and he just heard Sara sigh so he added with determination "It's right, Sara, you know it"

"No it's not. You aren't supposed to be part of my world" she said quietly

Neal was quite uneasy at Sara's mood swings. Was she on that day of the month maybe? One minute she was flirting and laughing and now she was all somber and regretful. How was he supposed to keep up with that? He wasn't sure and being on the phone not looking at her eyes made it even more difficult so he opted for sincerity "But I am… I want to be part of your world" he said and then remembered something "I can become a triton for you"

"What?" she said confused

"Yeah, you know like in the little mermaid?" said Neal

Sara laughed really hard for a whole minute "Oh Neal… I can't believe you remember that!"

He smiled, finally, she was back to a lighter mood "So, birthday girl, I gotta get back to work. But see you at 8 pm, alright?"

"You bet. Thank you, Neal" she said sincerely

"My pleasure, Repo" he said hanging up and going back to work to find out more about Taylor's plans with his street contacts.

In the meantime, Peter was flipping through Nicolle Williams' file and saw what he suspected. Neal's friend was dirty indeed. He smiled shaking his head. He kept on reading… Nicolle was an alias of course. Real name: Clarice Andrews. No information on her parents or any detail prior to her 18th birthday. Peter frowned and typed his private Federal Agent security information code into the Social Security database to dig further.

"Ah so she's a runaway kid who changed her name legally when she turned 18th. Now why would you do that, Clarice?" he asked to himself, clicking on some links to find out more. He kept on reading out loud… "Daughter of Adrianne Andrews and Robert Ellis. Born on July 21st 1980 in Arlington, Virginia. One sister: Sara Marie Ellis. What?!" he almost shouted. Holly cow, she was Sara's long-lost sister. He wondered if Neal knew… he decided he didn't want to wonder, he wanted to find out. Peter took his jacket and went to see her.

"Peter! Do you mind me taking a little extra time for lunch today?" asked Neal while Peter was heading out the door "It's Sara's birthday and I just wanted to do something special for her" he explained with a smile

Peter smiled back "Just behave" and then took off.

Neal went happily upstairs to the roof to continue his plan for Sara and right on time, he got a call on his cellphone "Yes, how may I help you?" he said with humor in his voice

"Neal! Kensington gardens close at 5 pm! Is this a joke?" said a little exasperated Sara and then turned as she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Alfred with his hand extended holding a small rectangular box "What is this, Alfred?" she asked

"For you ma'am" he said politely

"Open it. Present number six" said Neal on the phone

Sara held the phone between her shoulder and ear to be able to unwrap the present. She opened it and saw that it was a very nice platinum lock-picking set adorned with little Swarovski crystals. "Neal! What kind of joke is this?!"

Neal chuckled "even when you're all fancy CEO now, I know how much you love being on the field and recovering stuff with your own hands, stepping on gray areas once in a while. So this happens to be a very feminine and cute lock-picking set, which can come in handy now"

Sara loved it. It was truly beautiful but Neal was crazy "Are you implying that I should trespass on Britain's royalty's private property?!"

"Yes!" said Neal

"Neal, as much as I love having fun, spending my birthday in jail is not on the top of my list" she said

"Oh c'mon, Sara! You only turn 31 once! And Alfred is there to take care of you" Neal explained

Sara turned to look at Alfred, who just stood there smiling "It's ok, ma'am. I got you covered" he said

Neal heard and decided it was enough angst for her "Look, Sara, Alfred might happen to be the brother of certain high-profile security member of the Royal guard, so you're safe. Trust me" he said

She just sighed "Neal, I swear… wait until I get my hands on you!" she said irritated, yet secretly excited at the same time

"I'll be waiting" he said seductively and she just chuckled "Call me back when you're at the Serpentine bridge. You can do it, make me proud, Repo" he finished and hung up grinning.

"No, Neal, wait!" she groaned and approached the locked door. She tried for several minutes without succeeding

"You might want to use the toothy hook, ma'am" said Alfred

"I wonder how you and Neal became friends" said Sara and Alfred just smiled

Finally, after 5 more minutes, the cylinders gave in "I got it!" she said excited and began walking on the dimly lit garden until she caught a glimpse of the Serpentine bridge, which was illuminated with small candles all along and red rose petals. Sara gasped at the beautiful sight. She continued walking and heard soft music coming from a violin. She came near and saw a small table set up for two. Alfred pulled the chair for her and then left her there.

Sara took out her phone and called Neal "Working from a desk is taking your edge already. What took you so long?" he said teasing her.

"I haven't been around bad boys lately…" she said playing along

"Ah, thank God!" he said playfully "So, I hear you found Willie. He's a great violinist and he's been paid already so no matter how much he begs for an extra tip or how sick he tells you his kid is, don't buy it. He has no kids"

Sara laughed "Caffrey, you're amazing. Are you sure we won't get arrested?"

"If you get arrested, I have friends there too, so don't worry" he teased

Sara snorted "Thank you, Neal… I wish you were here. It's not so nice to be dining alone"

"Ah but you're not alone. Open the bag that's in the chair in front of you" he said

"Will I find a pocket version of you?" she said and went to open the bag to find a laptop. She opened it and sure enough, there was Neal on the screen. She hung up her phone.

"Hello beautiful" he said smiling the most gorgeous smile and wearing a tuxedo for God's sake!

Sara took a deep breath. He always had that effect on her. Damn him for being so beautiful, which is an adjective she never thought using on a grown man but there was just no other way of describing him. Plus, Neal was just not pretty to look at, he had the whole package and the way he had been caring for her today even from miles away, was just to melt for. "Hello yourself…"

"Can I look at you?" he asked sweetly

"Oh, I'm not sure exhibitionism is allowed here" she said smiling and stood up removing her coat

Neal gasped "Sara, you look… wow"

She smiled shyly "you don't look so bad yourself, Mr. Bond. Why so dressed up?"

"Didn't they tell you this is the proper etiquette in London?" he asked jokingly and Sara laughed. He continued "I just wanted to be dressed up for the occasion. It's your birthday dinner after all and you're looking stunning, but something's missing"

"What?" she asked shivering a little from the cold

"Present number 7 and this is the last; in the little black box in front of you. And please put your coat back on if you want to, I don't want you to catch a cold" he said noticing her shivering

"I'm ok. Another present?! Neal, you're spoiling me too much" she said smiling widely and going immediately to open it

"I told you this day was meant for you to be treated like a princess" he said sweetly

"Oh my God! Neal! These are amazing!" she said taking out a couple of emerald earrings mounted on a white-gold square shape with small diamonds sparkled around, with a matching pendant hanging from a thin chain. "Wait… are these?" she asked tentatively

"Hey I paid for them!" said Neal defensively

"With your FBI salary?" she said incredulously

"Not exactly. I'm an entrepreneur, I have my ways" he said grinning mischievously

She just chuckled and took off the earrings she had on, to replace them with the new, doing the same with the chain and pendant around her neck. She threw her hair back smiling and getting close to the screen "How do I look?" she asked Neal

He smiled back "Like the most valuable stolen treasure a man could ever found"

She laughed and kissed the screen "Thank you, Neal. This is really really… fucking awesome!"

It was Neal's turn to laugh now. Leave it to Sara to be 'romantic' with bad words. "So, are you hungry?"

"Starving! What'd you get me?" she asked looking around the table and silver plate covers.

"Chinese of course!" said Neal pushing his own screen back so she could see where he was, right on the rooftop of the FBI building "I recall you enjoyed our first dinner together very much so I wanted to repeat it for this special occasion. I got the fortune cookie and all" he said joking around

Sara laughed. She had been doing that a lot lately… "Oh let's hope intrigue is not following me around anymore" she said pouring some champagne on her glass

"So, I toast for you" said Neal raising his own glass full of champagne

"For me… being with you soon. Cheers" she said and clinked her glass to the screen while Neal did the same.

Meanwhile…

Doorbell rang… "Yes? May I help you?" Clarice said in the intercom

"Peter Burke, FBI. I'd like to speak with miss Clarice Andrews"

The FBI looking for her? Shit!

* * *

**I'd love to hear from you! Thanks :)**


	13. Chapter 13

**Making up for my absence, here's another chapter. Thanks for reading!**

* * *

**Chapter 13**

Clarice panicked immediately. The FBI looking for her! But the voice of the agent didn't sound menacing, he wasn't asking for a warrant either, he just sounded friendly, so maybe Neal had something to do with it? She decided she couldn't risk it and better play it safe "Um, she ain't home. I'm Betty, her roommate. Want me to tell her a message?" she said faking a weird nasal voice. She was an actress after all.

Peter pursed his lips. Roommate? Yeah right… he sighed but played along, no need to play the bad cop right now "When can I find her?"

"She comes back at around 9 pm. I'll tell her you came. Good evening Agent Burke!" she said in a rush.

Peter just stood there. Well, she was definitely hiding something and he had a feeling it wasn't good. If this was Sara's sister, he had to make sure she wasn't getting in too much trouble. He parked his car at a nice distance from her building and waited there foreseeing her running out anytime soon. He turned on the radio and his phone rang "What's up, Jones?"

"Peter, we got the results from the facial recognition we did on Gordon Taylor's friends" said the younger agent

"Good. Anyone familiar?" asked Peter with eyes fixed on Clarice's building

"Yeah. This name seems to be popping up a lot lately. Clarice Andrews, Neal's friend"

Peter let out a breath he didn't know he was holding "Thanks, Jones. Keep this information from Neal until I get to the office"

Clarice was just packing her bag to head to the theatre for rehearsals and she grabbed her phone really pissed off.

"Hello doll" said a very British accent

"You bastard! The FBI came to my door!" she practically yelled at him

"Calm down, darling. They have nothing against you, I'm sure it was just out of routine" answered the very same Gordon Taylor on the phone

"Routine? How is that possible? I told you I could help you but I don't want any trouble, I'm trying to set my life straight again" she said pacing in her apartment

"I hope that life includes me. I think we have a pretty good thing going on" he said charmingly

"Had. We had, Gordon, as in past tense. I'm dating someone and he's very nice" she said

"Oh yeah? I bet he's just another bad boy, we both know the type you like and to be honest, I'm just the best on that category" he said smugly

Clarice laughed "No doll. The guy I'm dating actually has class and yes, he is a world-class bad boy"

"Famous then?" he challenged

"Neal Caffrey, I bet you've heard of him" she said proudly. She knew Gordon Taylor was very well connected to the underworld and she actually heard about Neal and his anklet from Gordon himself a year ago when she was dating him while touring for a ballet show in Paris.

Gordon laughed wholeheartedly "Oh, darling. Neal is with the FBI. He might be the one calling the cops on you and believe me, he is very far from prince Charming. He's just a player"

"Shut up. I just don't want to be part of your little con, Gordon. Get yourself another patsy" she said ready to hung up

"Now wait just a second. You can't get off so easily. I do recall you owing me a favor… You will help me, otherwise a certain French police officer will be learning from your whereabouts soon" he threatened sweetly, using his very characteristic charm.

Clarice sighed, she knew she was trapped "What do you want me to do"

"Now that's my girl" said Taylor "Meet me for coffee at 7 in our usual spot"

"Not today. It's um… my sister's birthday. Can we have breakfast tomorrow?" she suggested

"Fine. You know you're my favorite girl, whatever suits best for you" he said and hung up.

Clarice took a deep breath. She knew it was stupid but every year on Sara's birthday, she just lit up a candle on a small chocolate cake, sang Happy birthday and spent the night knitting a small bracelet out of threads in the shape of a braid. Every year was a different color and after 18 years she had ran out of colors so she just started repeating them. This year it was green again. She kept every bracelet hoping to give them to her someday. Sara used to love those damn things when she was little and always kept telling her to do another one. Of course, Clarice was a bitchy teenager back then and just told her little sister to go away. She regretted it now…

Peter caught sight of Clarice going out of her apartment carrying a large gym bag. He followed the taxi she got in all the way to the theatre where they had seen the tango show not so long ago. Nothing unusual about that, he thought. He called Jones "I need you to put a discreet tail on Clarice, she's at the State Theatre in Brunswick, New Jersey. I wanna see where she heads to next"

Before going into rehearsals, Clarice grabbed her phone "Hi Neal, it's me"

"Hi Clarice! How are you?" answered a very happy Neal having just finished his lunch-dinner with Sara

"Can I see you? I need your help" she said quietly

"What's wrong?" he said worried

"Not over the phone. Can I meet you at your place tonight after rehearsals?" she asked and then added "Promise I won't push you any further. I just need to talk to someone"

Neal was caught off guard. Clarice was usually so full of energy, this was not good "Of course, I'll see you there"

7:30 pm Jones got a text message from the agent who was tailing Clarice "Subject has just entered Caffrey's home"

Jones passed on the message to Peter who said "That's fine, leave them alone. But please keep a close eye to her. Especially if she meets up with Taylor again"

"Hi Clarice, please come in" Neal motioned for her to come in "Want some wine?"

"Do you have scotch?" she asked and Neal smirked and poured.

"So what's wrong?" he said leading her to the couch

"Today is November 11th… my little sister's birthday. She must be turning 31" she said looking at her glass

Neal breathed in hard. This was just too much. She had to be Sara's sister "Do you miss her?"

"Every day. And I bet she just grew up to be a very successful woman. She was so smart and dedicated. So much passion and so driven. She didn't care what people thought about her. She was so strong…" she said with an air of nostalgia and emotion in her voice

Neal put a hand on her chin to make her look up "I'm sure she is all of those things now" he said with a gentle smile

"I really hope she is. At least one of us is successful" she said and a tear rolled down her cheek

"Don't say that. I bet your sister would be really proud of you" he said

She looked coldly at him "I'm an ex-convicted ballerina who hasn't even managed to get a leading role. Not to mention I've been out of rehab a couple of times and owe a lot of money to my credit cards"

Neal smiled "You are an amazing woman"

"Stop being so sweet or I'll rip your clothes off, Neal" she said only half-joking

Neal laughed and changed the subject "So what do you need my help with?"

She explained her link to Gordon Taylor and how she had met him a year ago in Paris, dated him and broke up with him, all in the midst of playing a con on a wealthy woman who owned way too many Faberger golden eggs, which of course she stole and then got caught. She would be in jail if it hadn't been for Taylor so she owed him and now she was trapped.

"And an FBI agent came looking for me today. I didn't open the door so he didn't see me but I'm afraid to get caught either way. By the Feds if I help Taylor, or by the French police if I don't help him" she said defeated

"Do you remember the name of this agent who came to see you today?" asked Neal having a suspicion of who it might have been

"He said his name was Burke" she simply said

Neal did sharp intake of breath "He's my handler, remember him from our little chopper adventure?"

"Was that him? He seemed nice! Well I didn't recognize his voice on the intercom today" she said

"He's a very nice man but he's also a damn good FBI agent and they are after Taylor. They already got a glimpse of the little crew he's gathering, mostly dancers and actresses. You have to get out, Clarice" explained Neal

"But how? I'm trapped!" she sounded desperate

"Relax, we'll come up with something, I promise. Most probably, Peter's got a tail on you as we speak, we need to keep our cover and he thinks we're dating so I suggest you spend the night here with me." said Neal and when he saw the look on her face he chuckled "I mean, I can take the couch"

She smiled crookedly "You're such a prune. I'll get you someday, Neal Caffrey. Can I use your shower?" she asked already taking her clothes off.

"Sure" said Neal nervously. She was definitely the Yang to Sara's Ying.

Neal took the time to call Mozzie over so he could help with a solution for Clarice's dilemma. He was on the terrace trying to come up with something himself while Clarice took a shower. His phone started ringing "Hi Peter, whats up"

"How are you doing, Neal?" he asked nonchalantly

Neal knew that when Peter called so absentmindedly was because he was testing the waters so he decided to get ahead of him "I'm kinda busy right now, you know, not alone I mean. Do you need anything?"

"Ooohh who is it?" asked Peter curious

Neal whispered "it's Nicolle"

"Clarice, you mean" Peter deadpanned

Neal sighed, busted. "Yes, Peter. How did you know?"

"Oh she happens to be a dirty little girl. Right down your twisted little alley, isn't it?" said Peter

"Peter" Neal groaned at Peter's choosing of words

"Neal, she's involved with Taylor somehow. Be careful. I know how tempting it was for you last time" said Peter

"Yeah but I had the promise of commutation back then. Now I got nothing stopping me" challenged Neal just pushing Peter's buttons out of sport

Peter grunted "Watch it, Neal. After your father's ordeal with Pratt, the Bureau is keeping a close watch on us and I won't be able to protect you so much if you go rogue on me"

"Aw Peter, I'm touched. You want to protect me!" teased Neal

"I'm not joking Neal"

"Relax, Peter. Have a little faith in me. Now if you don't mind, I have to go rogue on someone over here" he said suggestively

Peter groaned "Bye, Neal". Peter thought for a minute. If Neal knew Clarice was Sara's sister, he was definitely helping her but if he didn't know, he would be facing some sort of conflict of interest by having slept with both siblings? Peter didn't care about that second scenario, that would be Neal's problem and he would deal with Sara's baton later. However, the first option was what troubled him the most.

* * *

**Damn, the wait for Season 5 is killing me... Seriously. **

**Please leave a review, comment, complaint, whatever... that's the only remedy for my White Collar withdrawal symptoms right now.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Neal was back again to day number one, when he suspected Clarice being Sara's sister. While sipping wine in the terrace, he was plotting a way of making sure of it. Of course he could just ask her but he couldn't do that yet, she would be very mad at finding out he had his suspicions all along and didn't say anything, even more so, they almost had sex and even though Neal hadn't "planted his flag" as Mozzie said, he did go pretty far. He groaned out loud at his predicament. If Sara found out, she would kill him too for almost sleeping with her sister and for not mentioning anything about his suspicions.

"You're gonna catch a cold out there" said Clarice coming out of the shower dressed only on a tanktop and a black boxer-brief that she borrowed from Neal. It suffices to say that those clothes were covering very little and the cold weather was not helping to hide anything.

Neal gasped and ran inside to grab a kilt from somewhere wrapping it around her. Now that he was 95% sure she was Sara's sister, he felt as if he was a sinner –not that he had gone so much to church but he imagined that's how it felt.

Clarice looked at him amused "Do I make you that uncomfortable?"

"Yes" he blunted running a hand on his hair. He was only human and he had needs. His body didn't care that he just the most romantic evening with Sara.

Clarice laughed "Who says a conman can't be honest huh?" she said walking to the sofa and seating with her legs underneath her body "you can seat with me, I promise I won't rape you, Neal" she said teasing him

Neal smirked and went to seat there. Normally he wouldn't be this way at all next to a woman but this might be his sister-in-law someday, Connie and Conrad's aunt! He shook his head at his own ridiculous musings "So, today's your sister's birthday huh? Wanna talk about it?" he might as well make sure already.

She looked sad again "Yeah. She loved chocolate cake so what I normally do on this day is I light up a candle and sing happy birthday to her" she said a little embarrassed "I know it's silly but it makes me feel better"

"Not silly at all and I think I happen to have some cake leftovers on the fridge" said Neal standing up and going for the fridge. He had an idea… "Here, I don't see why break the tradition, right?" he said lighting up the candle on top of the dark chocolate piece of cake, on the table in front of her

"Neal! Thank you" she said shyly

"No problem. Now, imagine she is seating on that chair in front of you. Why don't you sing to her?" he suggested

"Are you a shrink? I recall doing something like that with my therapist, some sort of Gestalt crap" she said a little disgusted

Neal just chuckled "Humor me. C'mon you'll feel better" he said in almost a whisper

Clarice sighed and she began singing to the chair. While she did that, Neal took out his phone and started recording her on video discreetly.

"…Happy birthday dear Sara, happy birthday to youuuu. Happy birthday sis. I regret every day I'm not with you but I love you. I just hope you know that wherever you are" she said and then blew the candle and clapped smiling. Neal stopped recording just in time to catch a very shaken and crying Clarice, who threw herself in his arms. Neal just held her and rubbed her back.

After a while, Neal broke the silence "If you ever find your sister, what would you do? Where would you go together?" he asked tentatively still rubbing her back

Clarice said without hesitation "I'd hug her for hours and then, we would go scuba diving together"

Neal thought that was odd. Princess Sara, who never ever even let her hair get frizz, scuba diving? Maybe it wasn't the same Sara… "Why scuba diving?" he asked

"Just because we were always fantasizing about Prince Eric of the little mermaid and Sara, always driven by facts, really wanted to go down in the sea to see all the fish and coral reefs and find her own prince so I promised her that we would go together to Australia when she turned 18 but… well I never fulfilled that promise" she said sadly

Neal remembered Sara telling him about the fixation the sisters had on that damn movie, so there, another little proof point "That's nice. Don't say never, you could still do it someday. How about your parents?"

"No idea. When I left, all I remember was that my dad was a chauvinistic prick and my mom was just… not there" she explained and Neal realized he didn't know anything about Sara's parents, only that they had passed away.

Neal needed another piece of evidence and he suddenly remembered something Sara told him "And what about your old room? I mean, I kinda ran from home too and I remember I just took a poster I had from Da Vinci in my room but nothing else that I actually missed" he suggested placing certain words that could trigger in her response what he was looking for.

"Really? Well, my room was pretty plain. All I had were ballerina dolls and a stupid pony poster that my mom gave me once. I mean I hate horses and she just thought it would look cool in my room. She just never cared about me…" she said nonchalantly

There! The final proof point Neal needed. Clarice was definitely Sara's sister. Now he needed to figure out how to drop the bomb, on her and on Sara. But first, he needed to help her out of her little predicament with Gordon Taylor.

"So, are you done with your therapy?" she asked with a little smile? "It did help though. Thanks, Neal" she said kissing his cheek

Neal just smiled, he was actually happy to be helping her. "Glad to help. Now, about your thing with Taylor…"

"I'm meeting him tomorrow at 7 to find out what he wants me to do"

"Ok, I could tell Peter that you can work with us as our inside man and then…" started Neal but was cut off by her

"No, I can't work undercover with you... Gordon kinda knows that you and I are dating and he knows you're with the FBI" she explained

"What?!" Neal's worst nightmares were coming true. The word 'dating' drilling a hole in his brain.

"Hey, calm down. I didn't know us dating was such an outrageous idea for you. Geez…" she said a little hurt

"No, no, it's that… well, it complicates things" he said trying to cover it up

At that moment, Clarice's phone beeped. She checked for the new incoming message "Aw crap"

"What is it?" asked Neal getting closer to read the text: _'You better not bring Caffrey into this, he's FBI, got me almost caught last time. Watch your FBI tail, too'_

Neal sighed. So Taylor knew too much… "Don't worry, I promise Peter can protect you from Taylor"

"No Neal. You don't know him. He isn't violent but he can get vengeful and make my life miserable. You have to help me escape. C'mon, it's what you do best, isn't it?" she said, leaving Neal speechless for once.

"C'mon, you can help me change my name, wouldn't be the first time…" she muttered the last part

"You've had other ID's apart from Nicolle Williams?" he asked aiming for the final proof

"Yeah… Clarice is my middle name. Andrews is my mother's maiden name. I changed my name legally when I turned 18" she said and then finished "My real name is Emily Ellis"

Holly cow. Neal could almost scream from happiness. Sara would be so thrilled! But then again, it's not like he could just call her and say, 'hey Sara I found your sister but she's in legal trouble so she needs an island to run to'… Although Britain was technically an island… Neal's brain wheels turned really quickly "I have an idea to get you out of here" he said excited.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Clarice woke up to the smell of delicious Italian roast coffee. She opened her eyes slowly and found herself in a very comfortable bed that smelled even more delicious than the coffee. It was Neal's… even when he hadn't slept there, the pillow where he usually slept smelled heavenly; she breathed in deep and immediately wished she could wake up like this every day. If only he wasn't so damn hung up on his past girlfriend… she rubbed her eyes and got up from bed. There was no sign of him. Weird, she thought. She followed the smell of the coffee and saw the table arranged with pancakes, bacon, fruit, juice and a cute flower in a vase. Wow… she was very confused. Why was Neal being so sweet with her if he wasn't interested? Was he gay or something? She kept mentally rambling with possibilities of why Neal acted the way he did.

"Morning sleepyhead!" said Neal coming out of his dressing room adjusting his tie

She turned to see him and couldn't help but inhale sharply. Hair wet from the shower, recently shaved, smelling delicious and the most beautiful smile ever. She returned the smile "You're quite the housewife I see"

Neal chuckled "I like cooking. I made breakfast for you but I can't stay, I gotta go to work. Did you sleep well?" he said in a rush

"Fantastic. You've got a very nice bed" she said mischievously

Neal blushed a little and changed the subject walking to the mirror to finish up his tie and put his jacket on "So, I say you go have lunch with Taylor and find out his target. The FBI will probably follow you but don't you worry, I'll take care of them so you won't end up in their radar. Then meet me here around 6 for next steps, alright?"

"Ok…" she said quietly while admiring the view and thinking what a perfect man he was and he seemed. But there was something very strange about him, of course he had many secrets and obviously he was used to getting his way all the time, but she could tell he was a good man above all. However, he was a conman and of the very best so she couldn't help but wonder if maybe she was being part of a bigger plan or a con? She was very suspicious or maybe she was just trying to find reasons not to love him… she sighed and walked towards him to straighten the already perfectly straight tie, just to have an excuse to touch him. Then, crossing her arms she asked "Why are you helping me, Neal? It's obvious you don't want me because you're head over heels over some stupid woman who left you. And yet, you are the nicest man ever with me. Why? And don't give the we're-friends crap. Men and women can't be friends. So you're either very gay or very weird"

Now that's what he'd call a creepy resemblance to Sara, Neal thought. Both sisters had the same bravado and no-beating-around-the-bush attitude. And there were two of them in the world. Damn, he thought. He sighed… "Look, Clarice… or should I call you Emily?"

"Clarice is fine. Emily died 18 years ago" she said coldly

Neal swallowed and licked his lips nervously "Ok, Clarice. I really like you and I just want to help you. I know what you've been through, I've been there myself and much worse, believe me. But life put Peter in my way and he has taught me to live differently, see the world from a different perspective, a brighter less distrusting one. I thought I could try and do the same for you"

She looked at him scrutinizing his eyes for any trace of a lie but found none, just an ocean of blue in which she could get lost very easily "You think I'm some sort of a damsel in distress and you my knight in shining armor?"

Neal laughed briefly "I'm very far from being that but I can try. Plus, you came to me for help, right? That's what I'm doing"

"You're something, Neal Caffrey. I still think you have hidden motives but fine, I do need rescuing now" she said defeated. He just too damn difficult to read and he seemed sincere.

Neal smiled. Sara would never admit needing help. It was a nice change "Good. See you later then. Please feel at home" and he left for work.

Around 1:30 pm Jones got into Peter's office to announce the most results of the surveillance team on their current case "Peter, Neal's friend left June's around 11:30 and headed straight to a café in Soho to have lunch with Taylor"

Peter sighed and leaned back in his chair looking down at Neal through the glass. "Thanks Jones. Keep it to yourself, I'll handle it". He got up and called Diana with the trademark two-finger sign.

"Yeah boss?" said Diana

"Did you lose sight at any moment of Sara's sister file?" asked Peter

"Um…" she hesitated for a moment

"Diana? Did Neal see that file?" asked Peter already fearing the answer

"I'm sorry Peter, was he not supposed to see it? He said you already knew about it and he requested to send it himself… damn it, I'm so stupid" said Diana feeling really rookie with Caffrey's methods

"It's ok, Di. Thank you" said Peter, grabbed his jacket and went to Neal's desk.

"Neal, wanna go for lunch?" he asked

"Nah, I'm fine Peter, not hungry" said Neal

"I insist" said Peter with a look and tone that suggested that was not exactly an invitation but an order.

Neal stood up "Lunch it is then"

They walked over to a deli around the corner. Peter ordered a cheese roast beef sandwich and Neal, a fancy ciabatta with salmon and camembert cheese; sparkling water for both.

After hearing Neal ramble on about a certain German painter from the 18th century, who apparently had been suffering migraines while doing his best works and how Neal had been thinking recently on provoking himself a migraine in order to find his own style, Peter had had enough, "Are you gonna tell me about Clarice or do I have to go through the routine of getting it out of you?"

Neal smiled in a very Neal-way: cynical and sweet at the same time "I don't know what you're talking about, Peter"

Peter sighed "Alright. How about I tell you that she's having lunch with Taylor right as we speak?"

"Really?" said Neal apparently 'surprised'

"Yeah, I was surprised too. But you know, since she's a dancer with a criminal record, I figure she might end up on Taylor's crew. Or maybe, she's Taylor's girl and then where would that leave you? Isn't she dating you?" asked Peter in all too-fake-naïve way

"Dating? Hhmm I'd say we're at the stage of finding the proper convex/curve combo… I mean, she's a dancer, she's very flexible and I'm learning that I can be very flexible too. It's amazing what the body can do!" said Neal trying to deflect in a very sweet chit-chat manner

"Wow, fascinating" Peter said flatly and then added "I figure you know very well this type of bone structures? Have you ever dated someone who was similar to her before?" he asked innocently

"Hhhhmmm let me think… it's not easy to keep track with so many to compare with" said Neal pretending to remember past experiences

Peter glared at him, took his napkin crushing it in his hand to release some of his frustration and then said "Ok, so how about this? Where is Sara's sister file? I heard Diana gave it to you"

At this, Neal stopped smiling. Maybe Peter had connected the dots somehow and found out about Emily too "I mailed it to Sara. You know Peter, that is such a probie's task, you shouldn't give such tasks to senior agents like Diana"

"Neal, cut the crap and tell me what you know" deadpanned Peter not even bothering in playing this game anymore. He was getting tired.

Neal sighed "what I know depends on what you want to do about what you found out"

Peter raised an eyebrow "seriously?"

"Look, Peter, she could help us on the case but she's scared" said Neal not mentioning the fact that Clarice was a fugitive in France.

"Does she know about you and Sara?" asked Peter surprising Neal with his question

"Why would she know about me and Sara?" provided Neal trying his last attempt at covering her true ID

"Oh c'mon Neal… since when do you know she's Sara's sister?" said Peter now leaning on the table with arms crossed and little smirk "Tell me, did you sleep with her before or after you found out about it?"

"Are you 15?" said Neal mimicking Peter's posture and looking annoyed

Peter chuckled "Fine, possible deniability I guess. Is that your card to play with Sara? How are things between the two of you anyway? Isn't it gonna be uncomfortable when she finds out? I mean, it's her sister for God's sake, I know that Elle would absolutely kill me and then feed my balls to the piranhas if I did something like that and…"

"Alright, alright! You win. I'll talk but please stop. Geez…" said Neal exasperated

Peter grinned. His technique worked. He was only using a Caffrey method to reroute and frustrate in order to make the other give in whatever he wanted to talk about "I'm listening. What do you know and how can we catch Taylor"

Neal proceeded to tell Peter a summary of his history with Clarice and how he had just confirmed his suspicions. On the other hand, he explained that she had been Taylor's girlfriend and now he was scaring her so she could help him with the heist.

"And so she went to have lunch with him to find out his target" finished Neal

"Great. So she'll work with us on this?" asked Peter

"Yes but she's very afraid of Taylor seeing her with me or the FBI so you can't contact her. Taylor knows I work for you and she might have made the mistake of telling him that she was dating me" said Neal doing a very job of hiding the real reason why she was helping Taylor and hiding from the FBI at the same time.

Peter nodded processing all the information "And when are you gonna tell Sara that you're dating her sister?"

"Peter!" said Neal frowning "I'm not dating her ok? Ugh…"

Peter had never seen Neal so desperate except when he ate his deviled-ham sandwiches. He must be really upset about the fact that he was in trouble "Ooohh so you don't know what to do about it yet, do you?" and he laughed

Neal just pouted and started playing with his hat "it's not funny" he muttered

"Oh but it is" said Peter grinning "C'mon Casanova, let's get back to work. We have a lot of planning to do. Go home and wait for Clarice's information. I'm gonna go back to the office to meet with the Broadway Theatre commissioner"

Neal sighed "Peter, please don't tell anyone about this"

"Especially Sara?" teased Peter with a smirk

"Yes, Peter, especially Sara. This is very important for her and I don't want to mess it up" said Neal sincerely looking at Peter in the eye

Peter got serious and just nodded "Ok, but no sidetracking, Neal. That's all I ask. Do we have a deal?"

Neal smiled "Of course!"

Peter frowned at him and shook his head leaving the conman and pretty damn sure that sidetracking was exactly what Neal was planning to do.

Neal flipped his hat on his head and started walking home. He took his cellphone… "Hey Mozz it's me. How good are you handling eggs?" he said with a mischievous smile.

"Neal, whatever you mean, I'm not donating sperm" said Mozzie with a freaked voice

Neal chuckled. He had an idea to clear Clarice out of this mess.

* * *

**I had a very interesting dinner with friends and moms of my friends. One of the moms works as a jewelry designer and OMG, I was in shock at all the stuff surrounding this business. With all the talking about diamons, gems and so on, I couldn't help but think "Neal would steal this, Neal would forge that" hehehe and then I realized I'm very very obsessed with White Collar... not that I didn't know it already but it stills amazes me... ha!**

**So you still liking my story? Please tell me :) **


	16. Chapter 16

**So it's October 11th... Happy birthday to the ugliest and less talented man on Earth =D Matt Bomer, if you can hear me mentally and spiritually, receive all this raw love from me LOL - I seriously love that man!**

* * *

**Chapter 16**

Clarice returned to Neal's apartment around 5:30 pm.

"Hey, how did it go with Taylor?" asked Neal

Clarice sat down tired "He's a nice man you know?"

Neal smiled "he is indeed… so what's his target this time?"

"The Tony awards" she said and stood up to fill herself a glass of wine

"ReallY? What could be so valuable there?" asked Neal already going through the possibilities mentally. This was one target he had never thought of

"The Tony Awards are 66 years old this year and instead of the usual 2 thousand-dollar mix of mostly brass and a little bronze, with a nickel plating on the outside, the lucky winner for best musical of the year will receive a special edition of the famous award made of platinum with precious stones and diamonds which is worth 1 million" explained Clarice in one breath

Neal's eyes went out of their sockets "Seriously? Wow…"

"Yeah, apparently there's a very fanatic musical theatre enthusiast, willing to pay Taylor to steal this" she finished biting an apple from Neal's table

"Let me guess, so Taylor wants the dancers and actresses to steal and replace it with a fake?" asked Neal making a little fun of the very predictable style that Taylor had for stings

"You know, Gordon is not the brightest conman but he is very thorough in his operations and that's why he has never been caught" said Clarice glaring playfully at Neal

"Ouch" said Neal with a smirk

She frowned playfully scolding him and continued "so basically, there will be a special tribute to all the biggest Broadway classics before the big award goes to the winner and he wants us to audition to be part of the ensemble to be able to steal it and replace it with a fake. He's looking for a gem expert and a forger, by the way" she said with a hint of mischief in her eye

Neal smirked but shook his head "although very tempted, I'm afraid I can't… but I what I can do is help you clean your debt with him so that you don't have to be a part of this heist"

"How?" she asked curious

"Do you still have the Fabergé eggs you stole?" he asked

"Um…"

"Clarice?"

"Not all of them… I fenced two of them. Living on the run is not a wealthy lifestyle. I was unemployed for a year! And the tango show hasn't been exactly well-paid" she said sheepishly

Neal sighed not liking this…

"Oh but I still have the winter egg!" she added happily

"The winter egg?! That is worth like almost 10 million dollars!" said Neal very surprised that she had something like that on her possession

She smiled wickedly "I know. I'm a closet billionaire"

Neal shook his head smiling "So you're gonna have to give it back, not exactly to the owner but to the insurance company who paid for the theft"

"What?! No way!" she refused

"Clarice, it's the only way that Taylor won't hold anything against you and I swear to you, Peter is going to catch him this time and you along with him" explained Neal carefully

"Are you gonna tell the FBI what I just told you?" she asked challenging him

"Not exactly. If I did that I would have to explain your connection with Taylor and the eggs as well" he said with a raised eyebrow

She looked down for a minute contemplating her chances "I guess it could work… so how do I return the egg?"

"Well, that's the tricky part and I'm still working on it because the insurance company is in Europe, in London actually" he said

"London?! And how am I supposed to get through customs with a million dollar egg?!" she asked freaking out

Neal just fidgeted with his hat… "I'm still working on that…"

Clarice stared at him for a while and said… "Don't know why but I trust you. Please let me know when you come up with something. I gotta go for rehearsals. Thank you, Neal" she said warmly kissing his cheek.

Neal was left alone with his thoughts… he already had an idea on how to get the egg past security without fussing but he still needed to figure out how to get Sara on board with the mysterious return of the stolen egg without pressing charges against her own sister…

And just like Cinderella ran out of magic by midnight, Neal had an idea around the same time…

At the same time, 7:30 am London time, Sara was sipping coffee and eating some fruit at home while checking some emails on her phone and hearing the morning news on TV playing on the back. She saw a new e-mail had arrived from an unknown address with an even stranger subject saying "Better late than never. Happy 31st Birthday". She thought it must be one of those spam emails that somehow reach your private work e-mail address and when she was about to delete it… "what the hell…" she said while clicking on it to open it. There was a video in it and the still caption showing a blurry figure of a woman and some sort of cake and a candle. This was very very odd… she clicked on the video play button…

_"…Happy birthday dear Sara, happy birthday to youuuu. Happy birthday sis. I regret every day I'm not with you but I love you. I just hope you know that wherever you are"_

When the video ended Sara was speechless and with tears rolling down furiously from her cheeks "Oh my God… Emily…"

After recovering from the shock, her rational brain started working again and began thinking of possibilities of this being true. She watched it again and again. It had to be Emily. She looked about her age, red curly hair just as she remembered and even though she didn't see her face clearly, she could recognize her profile anytime. The video had been recorded from an odd angle, apparently without the woman knowing she was being recorded.

Finally recovering from the shock she went back to her room to re-adjust her make-up after crying so much. She couldn't believe this was happening after all these years. Maybe Emily was in danger or kidnapped and this was a sick way of warning her of an upcoming ransom or something like that? Should she let the police know? But what if this was only a joke? She was gonna be laughed at and she couldn't stand that. And there was also the possibility that it was not even Emily… There were so many questions in her mind and not one single answer.

Frustrated, Sara did the only thing that could at least give her an insight into the conspiracy world… "Hi Mozzie, it's Sara, hope it's not too late over there" she said over the phone

Mozzie was very surprised to say the least "Oh hi Sara, how are you? Don't worry, conmen keep odd hours" he said smiling

"Mozzie I need your help. I just got a video from an anonymous source and I need to know where it came from. It's very important to me and I just need some answers" she said in a determined voice not caring for chit-chat

"Um sure, send it away. But are you ok Sara?" asked Mozzie wondering why she was calling him and not Neal "Why are you asking me this and not Neal?" he asked voicing his thoughts

Sara sighed "Because you are the king of conspiracies, aren't you? And you're the tech savvy; Neal has other fields of expertise…"

Mozzie grinned feeling proud "Yes I am. At your service ma'am"

"Thank you Mozzie. I gotta go to work. Please call me with anything, I mean ANYTHING you find out" she said and then hung up

Mozzie hung up, received Sara's email, watched the video and called Neal "Are you insane?!"

"What's up Mozz?" said Neal on the other side of the line getting ready for bed

"Why would you do something so cruel to Sara?!" asked Mozzie very upset

"Did she call you to find out who sent her the video?" Neal asked rhetorically "Of course she did. What did you tell her?"

"Nothing! I just watched the thing but seriously Neal, this very very mean, Matthew-Keller-mean" said Mozzie apparently offended by all this

"I know, but it's all part of a plan to help Clarice. Meet me at my place for breakfast tomorrow and I'll explain" said Neal and hung up

The next day, 7 am sharp, at June's, Mozzie was arm-crossed seating stubbornly waiting for a very sleepy Neal to explain his very mean actions

"Will you relax?! Clarice is being chased by the French police for some Fabergé eggs she stole a year ago. I just found out yesterday morning that Sterling Bosh is the insurance company for the Fabergé jewelry in Europe, the London branch actually, so we need to help Clarice get to Sara somehow and return the egg so Taylor can stop blackmailing her but…" he paused to sip at his coffee

"… But you're afraid bad-ass Sara might not be that helpful with her sister if she doesn't know who she is first" Mozzie finished for him

Neal just grinned "exactly"

"It's still very mean. Please don't you ever do that to me if you ever find my parents or long-lost brothers" said Mozzie taking a long gulp of wine "Ok, so what do you want me to tell Sara about the video?"

"Just stall for a day, tell her you're looking into it" said Neal

"You didn't even bother on sending it from an encrypted email, Neal. Gmail, seriously?" said a very annoyed Mozzie "if I stall, she will think I'm the worst hacker ever!"

Neal sighed "It's just a means to an end. I think you can live with a hurt reputation for a while, don't you think?"

"Ok, and how do you plan on getting a bunch of eggs through customs?" asked Mozzie

"One egg actually. The winter egg" said Neal smiling

"What?! Aaahhh so little Miss Repo's sister is very talented I see. That is probably around 10 million! The only eggs worth more than that are mine" said Mozzie

"Focus, Mozz?" said morning-grumpy Neal. "Alright, so we need to find a way to disguise a 10 million dollar egg"

"With an omelet maybe?" suggested Mozzie only half-joking

Neal grinned "Not exactly but close"

* * *

**NOTE: All wisdom about the Tonys and Fabergé goes to Wikipedia. But I have to say I love those damn eggs, they're amazing! I got to see a small collection they have at a jewelry store of the 6th Av Hilton Hotel's lobby in NYC and WOW...**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

"By the time you actually eat that cereal it's gonna be hideous" said Elizabeth contemplating her very distracted husband who had been staring to space for the past ten minutes instead of eating his breakfast.

"What?"

"What did Neal do this time?" asked Elizabeth knowing all-too-well

"Oh nothing… it's just that… did you know Sara has a sister who disappeared 18 years ago?" said Peter putting his spoon down giving up on his very ruined cereal.

"Oh wow, no I didn't know" said Elle scrunching her nose

"Yeah and the thing is… remember the tango dancer who Neal danced with?"

"Yeah, how could I forget. She was gorgeous"

"Well, turns out Neal thought she was gorgeous too and started dating her, only to recently find out that she is Sara's long-lost sister" explained Peter

If Elizabeth had been drinking something she would've spilled it all over the table "What?! Now that's what I call destiny! What's he gonna do about it? Anyway, glad to see the source of your concern for Neal is not crime-related this time"

Peter smirked "Oh but it is, hon" and proceeded to explain all about the Taylor case before adding "… and I know Neal is not telling me everything, so I'm afraid he's concocting some twisted plan to help her or Taylor"

"Well, whatever it is, don't you dare intervene Agent Burke" said Elizabeth and when she saw Peter's raised eyebrow, she added "It's Sara's sister. You have to help her too! Whatever trouble she's in!"

"Are you kidding me? Next thing I know, I'll have to put my own wife on cuffs for obstruction of justice!" Peter said standing up taking his plate to the sink while he muttered "I should remove this house from Neal's radius"

Later on, Neal arrived at the FBI having left Mozzie to set everything up for Clarice's departure tonight.

"Hey Clarice, it's Neal. You'll have to leave tonight for London, I'll explain later but you leave on the 11 pm flight from JFK. Meet me in my place at 6, bring the winter egg and I'll have everything ready for you" said Neal over the phone before entering the building.

Peter entered the building a while later and stood in front of Neal's desk smiling "So, tell me buddy, is your new girlfriend gonna help us with the case? Or should I say sister in law?" he said whispering the last part

Neal frowned "Peter, are you sure you're familiar with the concept of 'keeping a secret'?"

Peter kept on smiling "Oh I'm just following-up on our conversation… Neal, I know you're not telling me everything but I swear if you…" he couldn't finish because Neal interrupted

"Peter, you said that even when there wasn't trust, there was always faith that I was doing the right thing, didn't you? Well now is the time for you to apply your own quote" said Neal looking seriously yet amused

Peter just sighed and shook his head "We've put on around-the-clock surveillance on Clarice. She seems to be key in Taylor's plan, if she doesn't cooperate with us, we can't help her, Neal. Make sure she knows that"

"I will Peter. Thanks for the heads-up" said Neal flatly and then added "I also have faith in you doing the right thing for the right reasons"

Peter frowned and went up to his office without any further comment. Elizabeth's words resonating on him. Hell, he did want to help Sara's sister but not if it meant overpassing the law. He'd had enough with helping Neal do that on the past…

By 6 pm, Peter received notification from surveillance "Subject Clarice Andrews has entered Caffrey's apartment". Peter sighed…

She entered carrying a gym bag with normal clothes instead of the usual dancing and rehearsal gear. She saw a funny-looking bald man with big glasses sipping wine with Neal

"C'mon in, Clarice. Meet Mozzie, he's my friend and he's helping us" said Neal doing the proper introductions

Clarice smiled at Mozzie and nodded "nice to meet you, Mozzie"

"Likewise. So let's see the egg" said Mozz without further chit-chat

They proceeded to show Clarice 10 other eggs that looked exactly like the one she stole. And when you opened them, they were filled with chocolate. They explained to her the plan to go through customs, which was to make her appear as the owner of a gourmet chocolate shop who was experimenting on a special edition of Easter eggs that would be presented on a chocolate festival in London organized by famous royalty-chef Alexander Rushkind, the same who had cooked breakfast for Sara. Her fake name would be Maria Miller, born and raised in Ottawa, Canada.

Clarice couldn't believe this plan, it was just too crazy "Ok, so let's say I go through customs and then what?"

Neal came to her and patiently said "As soon as you arrive in London, you go straight to Sterling Bosh headquarters and request to speak with the CEO to tell your story. But you can only speak with the CEO, ok? No one else"

"Why?" she asked

"Friend of mine…" said Neal shrugging

"So you happen to have a friend who's a big shot in an insurance company who will just recover the egg and clear me of all charges? Just like that?" she asked incredulously

"That's right" he said with utmost confidence but secretly crossing his fingers behind his back for Sara to play it gently on her

"Yeah, don't worry. This friend is very reliable" said Mozzie trying to be reassuring

Clarice looked from one to the other suspiciously a couple of times and then finally nodded "Fine. And what about Taylor?"

"You leave Taylor to me" said Neal winking at her

While Mozzie went to finish putting chocolate inside the real egg and sealing the whole box of chocolates, Neal and Clarice went to the terrace.

She leaned her arms and rested her chin on the balcony looking at the amazing view. Neal just stood beside her "What are you thinking?"

"I never thought I'd be on the run again… I felt I finally had found home in NY and now this…" she said not taking her eyes off the street

"Well, you know what they say: Home is where the heart is" said Neal trying to cheer her up

She looked quizzically at him "So this isn't home for you either, huh?"

Neal looked confused not following entirely "What do you mean?"

"Your heart is somewhere else, I mean you said you couldn't follow her because of your anklet. But you're obviously very in love with her and she is stupidly far away from you" she explained turning around

Neal was stomped and just looked down. He had never told Sara that he loved her and actually, he had never even admitted it to himself but it might actually be true, he thought.

Clarice chuckled seeing how Neal was not denying anything "She is one lucky bitch"

Neal laughed briefly "Thank you, I guess"

"Can I kiss you goodbye?" she asked. Neal's eyes got big as saucers and she just laughed at his expression "Geez, it's just a kiss, Neal. And we will probably never see each other again"

Neal relaxed a little and just watched with a little bit of apprehension how Clarice was getting closer to him. He didn't move and just closed his eyes when he felt her lips on his. She grabbed his face with both hands and pressed her lips tightly to him. When she parted she sighed "Thank you"

"Clarice, you're an amazing woman and I'm really sorry that I can't give you what you deserve" he said tenderly caressing her cheek

"So you do love her, don't you?" she asked looking into his eyes

Neal gave her a shy smile "I think I do"

She returned the smile "Go get her, Neal. She deserves to know how you feel about her"

"Someday I will" he said grabbing her hand and taking her inside again "C'mon, we gotta get you to the airport"

They asked June's grand-daughter to help them loose her FBI tail by putting on a curly red-hair wig and going out with the same gym bag that Clarice had got in before. Once the surveillance team had gone following the wrong person, Clarice slipped out dressed in black, hair in a knot and a hat to cover its fiery red color.

Neal and Mozzie stood there looking the cab leaving "So what was that kiss about?" asked Mozzie

"Goodbye kiss" said Neal

"Right… you're playing with fire, Neal. When Sara finds out, all bets are off and I'm afraid you'll want to run back to prison just to find refuge from her wrath" said Mozzie in a very apocalyptic way

Neal put his hands in his pockets and just shrugged "even when Sara hates me, I'll be happy for her finally reuniting with her sister"

"Whatever you say, Mother Theresa" said Mozzie

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**Oh the joy of your reviews! Please make me drunk with them! :) **


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

She couldn't believe she was doing this, she was actually playing Robin Hood by returning the stolen goods, not exactly to the poor but returning them nonetheless. Neal's plan of chocolate eggs had been brilliant, custom officers didn't even bother on checking any further when they saw the fancy box at the x-ray machine, apparently, officers didn't know that x-ray only show those stones that are not diamonds, these last come absolutely transparent through x-ray due to their refraction properties so the other eggs served as good bait for distraction on the real egg. It was a brilliant plan! Neal was a genius, Clarice thought proudly.

She stepped off the plane the next day at 2 pm London time and went straight for Sterling Bosh's offices hoping the rest of Neal's plan worked just as well.

Clarice couldn't help but sigh and smile remembering the last time she had been in London; it had been many years ago when she came to spend the summer with Sara. Those were the best vacations ever. So much had happened in her life and since the day she ran away, she had felt homeless, literally for a while and figuratively forever. Neal was right, home was were the heart was but her heart had been homeless as well for so long… she didn't want to run anymore and only hoped that maybe after clearing her theft, she could start anew and forget all her felon days, finally settle down and maybe find a man to fall in love with, preferably someone like Neal Caffrey. She smiled at the thought of him. He was every girl's dream but he was just that for her… a dream.

She took her secure cellphone out and texted him "I'm safe heading to your friend's. Thanks, you're the best"

6 am in New York City - Neal woke up at the sound of his cellphone vibrating with a new message. He rubbed his eyes and read it. He smiled and answered "At your service. Always"

He went to the bathroom and when he got out he decided he might as well test the waters… he grabbed his phone again and dialed the familiar number.

"Hey Caffrey!" said a very cheerful Sara on the other side

Neal smiled immediately. He had been a little restless last night after the little exchange he had with Clarice. He realized his feelings for Sara ran very deep. She knew who he was and she put up with him, with just the right amount of respect and admiration, even when his behavior wasn't the best all the time. She just got him. He had decided he was going to fight for her against all odds "Hi Sara" he said softly and a little groggy

She apparently noticed his grogginess "Isn't it a little too early over there? Everything ok?"

"Yeah, I just woke up and thought I'd call the only person I know to be awake at this hour" he said playfully

She chuckled "Right. So why don't you go back to bed for a little while? I mean, you don't have to get up yet, try to get some sleep"

"I can't now that I'm talking with you" he said and heard Sara was not alone and she was actually covering the phone talking to someone else "I'm sorry, I guess you're busy, I should call later"

"No! no, just give me one minute" she said and then Neal heard from afar "Lucy, Richard, follow-up with Scotland Yard on this one. We need full force, this son of a bitch won't get away again"

Neal chuckled at bossy bitchy Sara. She was a real bad-ass when she wanted and he absolutely loved it.

"Hey, I'm back. So…" she started but Neal cut her off

"I love you being such a bad-ass. You're amazing" he said with all honesty he could put in his words

Sara laughed "Well, I have to be to catch the bad guys"

"Did you ever think of becoming an FBI agent?" asked Neal out of the blue with sincere curiosity "I mean, you sure have amazing detective skills and good instincts for criminals"

Sara thought for a minute "You know, it never crossed my mind but I suspect not being able to wear high heels and nice clothes had something to do with it"

Neal laughed "Yeah, good point. You would've made a very sexy FBI agent. I might have even let you handcuff me voluntarily" he said seductively

Sara snorted "I would've soooo nailed your ass to the wall, Caffrey"

"And I would've been soooo happy to have my ass in your hands" he countered teasing

Sara laughed really hard "God, I miss you! I can't wait for Christmas"

"So that means you're actually coming home for the holidays?" he asked really excited

"I think so, yeah. Will you be waiting under the mistletoe?" she asked playfully

"Hell yes. I'll even put my bed under the mistletoe" he said grinning

"Ah a little hopeful aren't we? I'll buy my plane ticket today and make reservations at the Plaza" she said

"The Plaza? Wow, fancy. But you know you can stay with me…" he said a little hurt

"No Neal, you're the one staying with me" she said smirking. She knew he couldn't see her but she hopefully could hear the mischievousness in her voice

Neal smirked back "Yep, the Plaza it's definitely within my radius"

"Good. Um… Neal, I gotta go. Rachel is frantically signaling that I have someone urgently looking for me. Thanks for calling though" she said sweetly

Neal thought that someone might be Clarice. He gulped nervously and closed his eyes hoping his plan worked… "Sara? I, um… really really miss you" he said softly. He figured if everything went to hell and Sara hated him after Clarice told her everything, then he might as well be honest about his feelings for her now.

She stayed quiet for a couple of seconds "I miss you too, Neal. A lot" she said quietly

"Sara?"

"Yes Neal?"

"Thank you for seeing the real me. You know, beyond the conman, just the man" he added

Sara frowned. Where is this coming from? She thought but instead she said "You're a good man, Caffrey. Your motives are right, it's just the impulses that get you in trouble and… I do like bad boys" she said trying to lighten the mood.

Neal smiled "Thank you. See you soon"

"Alright. Get some sleep, Caffrey. You can even dream with me if it helps" she said flirtatiously

"Hhhmmm good idea" he said in a deep voice that sent chills down her spine

They hung up and Neal got back to bed. Surprisingly, he fell asleep again.

Sara got back to her office with a huge grin plastered on her face. Neal always did that to her.

"Oh I know that look… whoever this guy is, you've got it bad for him" said Rachel, her nosy yet efficient assistant

"Oh please… nah, I'm just in a good mood today" said Sara not capable of admitting anything

"Yeah right… a love-induced good mood I bet" Rachel insisted

"So who's looking for me?" said Sara changing the subject

Rachel just shook her head. Her boss was a brilliant woman but hell will freeze before she ever admitted being in love "There's a woman by the name of Natalie Forks. She said she has something very important to tell you"

"Is she a new client? Did she make an appointment?" asked Sara hating people who just managed to interrupt your day like that

"No appointment, neither does she look like a potential client. She just looks… well, she's very pretty and all but she has this hippie look about her" explained Rachel scrunching her nose "she has an American accent though and said she wasn't going to leave until she meets with the CEO. Do you want me to call security?"

Sara sighed "No, of course not Rachel. Let her in, I still have time before my 4 o'clock board meeting, don't I?"

"That's right. I'll bring her in then" said Rachel going out of Sara's fancy humongous office

Sara had her back turned to the door arranging some papers for her 4 pm meeting and she heard someone clear their throat. Without turning around she just said "Please take a seat, I'll be right there with you in a minute"

Clarice took a seat and began admiring the huge office. So the CEO was a woman, which happily surprised her. She could now tell her father that girls could actually take on men's positions. The office was beautiful, classy and feminine. She couldn't help but notice that the only decoration it had on one of the walls was a framed painting from Raphael. It was Saint George and the dragon, she thought.

"So tell me, Miss Forks, what can I do for you…" started Sara while turning around in her chair but couldn't finish her sentence. Good thing she was seating… it was the woman from the video!

Clarice saw the woman in front of her and frowned. She looked somehow familiar… she extended her hand "Hi, thank you for having me without previous warning. I know you must be a very busy woman, I just have something very important to tell you"

Sara kept quiet, speechless actually. She took her hand and just nodded.

"Ok, first of all my name is not Natalie Forks, it's Clarice Andrews. But you know, I had to come here with a fake ID, courtesy of some friends back in New York, who are your friends too. Neal said the CEO of Sterling Bosh was his friend and would help me… he didn't mention you were a woman though, but I'm very happy to see women being very successful, congratulations! And so I believe I have something that belongs to you and I've come here to return it" she finished in one breath nervously playing with her scarf.

Sara felt like she had fell on the rabbit hole, she was trying to process everything this woman had just said: Clarice. Andrews. New York. Neal. Fake ID…

Right at that moment, the office boy decided to make a very stormy entrance "Hello Miss Ellis, sorry to interrupt but there's a package for you marked urgent. It comes from the FBI's New York office" he said happily and a little out of breath. Surely he must've come running to deliver the apparently urgent package.

Clarice's eyebrows rose so high that they might as well blend in with her hairline. "Ellis?" she thought.

Rachel came in running a second later "I'm sorry Sara. Jimmy here just won't understand the concept of private meeting. C'mon Jimmy, the package can wait for later" she said pulling the young boy out.

"But it says urgent! Look here, 'Deliver urgently to Miss Sara Ellis', see?" he read out loud while being pushed out of Sara's office.

When Sara turned to look at the woman in front of her again, she found her covering her mouth gasping for air and crying furiously. She stood up and went to her frowning; she hated women who just cried out of the blue but something was odd about this one and it made her curious and touched. The other woman just stood up as well and threw her arms around her with such force that she almost knocked Sara down.

"Oh my God. I thought I'd never see you again!" said Clarice between sobs and grasped Sara's face caressing her as if trying to make sure she was really there

Sara was in utter shock not really understanding anything and yet feeling a strong force pulling at her heart drawing her to this woman.

Clarice was just smiling impossibly wide and when she saw that there was a void of uncertainty and doubt in Sara's eyes, she finally said "It's me! Emily!"

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**So that was the big moment. Did you like? We still have yet to see Sara's reaction... hhhmm I wonder what's it gonna be... I have an idea but would love to hear your thoughts :)**

**In case you haven't noticed, I love writing a very playful, flirty romantic Neal :) Is it too much out of character? doesn't seem to me but then again, I just keep fooling myself to fulfill my fantasy LOL**

**Also, I'm very pissed at the fact that Season 5 premieres tomorrow and I can't watch it because I don't live in the US. That is seriously not fair! Anyone know of a way I can watch it online? **


	19. Chapter 19

Hey there!

I did see the season premiere, thanks for your suggestions on how to watch it! And Oh boy! So much happened! Not gonna say anything in case someone here didn't see it but geez, I'm seriously at the edge of my chair! I don't care if my laptop gets all kinds of viruses but no ilegal trap is gonna stop me from watching the next episode LOL

Anyway, here we go with the story...

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**Chapter 19**

Many times she had dreamed of this moment and it all involved random encounters, at a park, at a nightclub, at a library, at a beauty salon… but not at her office overseas and not like this. Nothing could have ever prepared Sara for this moment. She felt a pain in her chest that was pushing at her stomach making it difficult to breath; only short breaths came and she could feel wild torrent of blood spasms in her veins; hot and cold, all sorts of chemical reactions going on at the same time in her body. She was just frozen.

She heard as if someone was calling for her from a very far distance, as if she was in a cave… "Sara?"

Emily had been in ecstasy. Never in her wildest dreams had she ever imagined she could find her sister again and like this! She was the friking CEO of a big shot company for God's sake! And she was beautiful! She had so much style and class. She had always been this shy lanky girl who had now somehow blossomed into a beautiful sophisticated woman "Sara?" she repeated.

Sara seemed to focus again and her first reaction was to push back from the woman's embrace, frowning and really trying to grasp a piece of reality in this surreal moment. She kept quiet and started walking to the window as if putting some distance would make her think clearer.

"Sara, are you ok? I'm sorry for this surprise, believe me, it has been quite a shock for me too but oh God! This is amazing! I can't believe it!" said Emily booming with happiness

Sara turned to look at her full of incredulity. She knew she should be happy too, that's how it all had played in all her fantasies but reality always fail to comply and so here she was with her long-lost sister in front of her and she couldn't even be near her. She finally found her voice "How do I know it's you"

Emily smiled "even all dolled-up now, you're still the same fact-freak, aren't you?" she reached in her purse for the many thread bracelets she had done over the years and stepped closer to her "Here, I've been doing these for you, one for every year that I have been away. I know you loved them so… happy birthday" she said putting the crumpled bracelets in Sara's hand

Sara looked at her hand and felt tears threatening to fall. She blinked quickly to keep them at bay and took a deep breath.

"You believe me now, twizzler?" said Emily using Sara's childhood petname. Emily was always making fun of her saying she was a very lanky red sweet thing, very much like twizzler candy.

Sara gulped and leaned back to the window for support "how?" she just asked. She had so many things she wanted to say but not one of them was coming through in words.

"Oh it's a long story but let's just say destiny and an angel named Neal Caffrey brought me here" said Emily smiling widely

At the mention of Neal's name Sara looked up and seemed to regain the floor "how do you know Neal?" asked Sara getting very curious

"Oh that's a funny story too!" started Emily but Rachel interrupted

"Sara? I'm sorry to interrupt but the board is waiting for you… it's 4:05" said the assistant with a sheepish look

"Thanks Rachel, I'll be there in a minute" said Sara hating to be late for a meeting and then turned to Emily "I need to go. Can we talk later? Leave your hotel details with Rachel and I'll reach out for you later or whenever I can" said Sara coldly

Emily frowned "I'm… well, I don't have a hotel yet… I wasn't expecting to stay for long in London actually, I'm kind of… on the run" she said a little sheepish

Sara frowned "on the run? Are you in trouble or something?"

"Um… define trouble" said Emily grinning innocently

Sara sighed. She didn't like the sound and the look in her face. She had seen Neal with that expression way too many times before and if Neal knew Emily, she suspected that she wasn't exactly a model citizen "You know what, just… go to my apartment and I'll meet you there whenever I'm free… Rachel!" yelled Sara opening the door to call her assistant

"Tell Harold to drive this lady to my apartment, I mean, my flat and give her my spare key" said Sara in a commanding voice

Emily was in awe at her little sister "Wow, you are the boss!"

Sara ignored her comment and went on "Harold is my driver, he'll take you there. Make yourself at home. Penny is my housekeeper, she can cook for you if you're hungry, just call her at speed dial 5 and she'll come up right away…"

Emily was smiling like the Cheshire cat, so damn proud of Sara "Thanks, you don't need to go through all this trouble but thanks"

"Ok… I gotta go" and with that, Sara went to keep the bracelets in one of her desk drawers and left for her meeting.

When Emily arrived at Sara's place she was awestruck. It was a loft in a beautiful 18th century building in a very posh neighborhood. It was a huge apartment decorated with cream and white colors and very classy old-fashioned furniture. She kept walking around but not wanting to intrude in any of Sara's personal things, she just remained on the living room and kitchen area and looking for a bathroom when she spotted a picture that caught her attention. There in a dark-wood frame was a picture of Sara and Neal smiling; she had her arms around Neal's neck and was leaning lovingly to his face. She looked closely and judging by the position of Neal's arm, she could tell it was an auto-picture. They were at the top of some very high building in New York and from the angle of it, looked like the Empire State. She looked closely and gasped at seeing the ring on Sara's finger "Holly shit!"

Suffices to say that Sara was absolutely in no condition of running a board meeting after the little event in her office, she wasn't going to admit it in front of her staff though "Thank you everyone, I trust you will do your job just well and the partial Q4 earnings will just turn out great. I say we finish this and reconvene later this week. I have an urgent case I need to look after personally. You can keep going if there's something you need to address now but I have to go. Rachel can fill me in tomorrow" she said already standing up and gathering her things

"Are you ok, Sara?" said the very sweet and charming head of finance, Richard Bloomfield.

Sara didn't have time for his flirty-self so she just dismissed him quickly with a wave of her hand "Yeah, fine. I gotta go. Thanks Richard"

She stepped quickly out of her office when Rachel stopped her "hey you don't look good, can I do something for you?"

"Yes, cancel all my meetings for tomorrow and unless is Mr Winston Bosh calling, don't pass me through any calls ok?" she said and left quickly. She didn't even bother on waiting for Harold to pick her up, she just grabbed another car from the pool and drove away.

She barely made it out of Sterling Bosh's parking lot when tears started streaming down her face furiously. She should be happy about Emily appearing magically but she couldn't help feeling a lot of pain and rage, like she wanted to yell really loud. It was an old wound that she had worked really hard to heal over the years and had managed to overcome pretty well but now, she just felt like a little 13 year-old again, alone and abandoned by her older sister, the only one who stepped up for her and protected her from their father's hostility. Emily had been Sara's hero and role model, so beautiful and strong, always smiling and always so good at everything she did; so brave too, always capable of fighting against everything and not putting up with any of their parent's shit. She had been the one who told Sara everything about boys and her period, she had been crying thinking that she was very sick bleeding herself out but Emily found her in the basement and explained to her what was happening and told her that she had just become a princess and that it wasn't blood, "it's just your body getting rid of all the little girl to make room for the woman inside", she had said. Sara chuckled. Emily always had a very whimsical way of seeing things but it always made her feel better. In many ways, Emily had been the mother that Sara never had because her mother was just not… well, just not there.

So Sara had learned to be alone, independent, not needing anything or anyone. Since Emily left, she had to learn to survive by herself and in time, she learned to live. Sure, she had trouble trusting people and God knows how much she struggled with making friends. That is until Neal showed up in her life and introduced her to a whimsical side of life again, not a very legal one but a kind of childish and playful way of living, just following your impulses and living in the clouds all the time. Sara wondered how the hell Neal met Emily and if he knew that she was Sara's sister. Surely he would've told her if he knew, right? Emily did say she was in trouble and that Neal was the one who had helped her escape from New York to come looking for Sara but then again, Emily said her "real name" was Clarice Andrews so there's no way Neal could've known that or could he? And then, why would he tell her to come looking for Sara for help? What kind of help did she need?

Sara realized it was getting late and it was almost 7 already… she had just parked outside her apartment not wanting to go up, not knowing what to do or say… maybe she should call Neal first? Her fingers were apparently faster than her mind making a decision so the phone was ringing already

"Hi Sara" came Neal's soft voice. He could hear her breathing slowly yet heavily and remained quiet for a while giving her time

"Since when did you know?" she asked after a while. She didn't sound angry, she sounded vulnerable, afraid.

Neal decided to go for pure honesty here "I've had my suspicions but I just confirmed it two days ago." He cleared his throat "have you um, talked?"

So Neal did know she was her sister and didn't ever bother on denying or sidestepping around it. She appreciated his honesty… "Not really… I just met with her for 20 minutes and I had to leave for a meeting" she said in a flat tone

"And where are you know?" he asked patiently

"Outside of my apartment… she's inside" said Sara with her eyes closed and head leaning back on the car's headrest

"I see… I understand how you must be feeling. I mean, it's hard, after so many years looking for them and when they suddenly appear in front of you, it's just like you are stumped and speechless, a bundle of emotions. Happy emotional reunions only happen in movies. Real life is different" said Neal

"Are you talking about your father?" she asked

"Yes… when I learned he was my father I felt mostly angry but then again I wanted to run and hug him. It's just weird" admitted Neal feeling nostalgia. He would rather feel weird again instead of just sad and disappointed for his father becoming a murderer and incriminating Peter, but that was another story…

"Agh… exactly! I feel like I could rip her head off but at the same time I just…" she said finally sounding less flat but now choking with tears

"Hey, it's ok to cry. You have the right to feel angry and happy at the same time. She owes you an explanation too. Sure she had her reasons but she can't expect you to be throwing a party for her return. Just give it time ok? Don't push yourself" said Neal sounding incredibly comforting

Sara sighed "I wish you were here… I… um… I need you". There, she had said it; for the first time she had admitted she needed someone and it was whimsical Neal nonetheless.

Neal smiled deeply touched. He knew how hard it was for Sara to show her vulnerability but she appeared to be doing so more and more with him "I need you too, every day. And I wish I was there too but hey, you're a very strong woman, Repo, you just happen to be going through a lot right now"

Suddenly, Neal, the king of deflection had a very good idea to help Sara ease her way into facing Emily "hey, has she told you about her problem?"

"No, she just mentioned you told her I could help… by the way, she said you were an angel. How did that happen?" asked Sara curiously

Neal gulped. That was not his idea for deflection "Yeah well, I'll let her explain that but I think you should hear her out, she needs your help and that way you can focus on her problem instead of the long overdue reunion"

"Right…" said Sara not liking at all that Neal was evading his connection with Emily

"And Sara? Emily doesn't know about you and me. I just told her the CEO of Sterling Bosh in London could help her" added Neal

"Didn't want to ruin the Jerry Springer moment, huh?" she attempted at joking, that was at least a little progress "anything else I should know about?" she asked a little challenging

"Um… yes. The video you received this morning… I sent it" admitted Neal glad to be on the phone and not in front of her. At least a slap was expected

Sara sighed… "I should've known. Why?"

"I thought I could help you to prepare somehow for the meeting, otherwise you would've been even more defensive towards her" he said

Sara had to admit that Neal really did know her pretty well. She sure looked for the facts all the time and receiving that video this morning had made it easier and softer on Emily. She quietly said "Thank you, Neal"

Neal let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. At least the video was one thing less to worry about. Now of course there was all the history between him and Emily… he just swallowed hard and said "I'm always here for you, Sara. You'll be fine, just talk to her, she's your sister and she loves you"

"Yeah… Ok"

"Let me know how it goes. I'll be here on call" he said tenderly

"Thanks…" and she hung up. She wanted to say more to him but it was not the time and certainly not over the phone. She was a bundle of emotions and right now, she didn't have to focus on Neal but on a certain redhead up there in her apartment. She sighed and started walking up to face the inevitable, this little gift from destiny.

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**So... what do you think should happen next? This is getting too emotional and I just don't know if I should go down that road hehe **


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Back at the FBI white collar division…

"So Neal, how's Emily? She still sleeping at June's?" asked Peter not very smoothly, towering over Neal's desk

"Hmm?" there was nothing else Neal could say really

"Surveillance reported she left your place last night at around 8 pm but then again, she suddenly entered the ladies room at Bloomingdale's and never came out… do you know why? I just thought maybe the clumsy FBI agents followed a wrong target and she stayed in your place all night long" continued Peter

"There you go, you always find a good explanation even to the strangest scenarios, Peter!" said Neal going along

"Cut the crap, Neal. Come to my office. NOW" said Peter walking to his office and meaning business

Once with the door closed "A little birdie told me a certain redhead by the name of Natalie Forks left the country last night on the 11 pm flight to London via JFK" said Peter throwing on his desk a file with a copy of the fake ID

Neal took it and studied it for a while just stalling "I didn't know she made another ID for herself… it's good quality work"

Peter grunted tired of the conman's denial "I also started wondering why would she be so close to Gordon Taylor? So I started digging and apparently I found out that Interpol has been looking for a thief who stole some Fabergé eggs in France a year ago and the suspect's description matches a certain redhead we both know" said Peter in hopes of Neal giving in with his façade

"Um really? Fabergé is a little pretentious to me. I mean, eggs? Seriously? You would think such beautiful handicraft could be best used in other types of art but…" said Neal faking disgust for Fabergé's work

"Neal! Enough. I happen to know all your street contacts who make fake ID's and I know you or Mozzie helped Emily with this one and she is a fugitive! You could start an international incident!" said Peter now really losing it.

Neal looked at Peter knowing that his patience had reached its limit "Ok, calm down, Peter. I can tell that you're mad"

"Damn right! What were you thinking?! Did you think you could just play Oprah reuniting the sisters just like that?!" now Peter was really fuming "What made you think I wouldn't find out, huh? And you are incriminating Sara as well making her an accomplice. She could lose her job or even go to jail if Interpol finds out. Did you think about that too?"

Neal had not thought about that. He just thought that Sara could help Emily just like she had helped him with the Raphael "Peter, I have a plan to catch Taylor" he said hoping to change the subject and focus Peter's energy on something else

Peter sighed putting his hands on his hips "Don't change the subject"

"I'm not changing the subject, it's kind of related to Emily and just so you know, I do have a plan for her and Sara and I promise it's nothing illegal" said Neal putting up his hands defending himself

Peter looked at him with disbelief not buying it at all "Alright, get everyone in the conference room. As for Emily, you will explain everything tonight at dinner with Elizabeth"

"Are you sure you want to get Elizabeth involved in this?" asked Neal

Peter chuckled "She's practically making me help Emily too so I'm sure she will love to hear about your plan"

Neal grinned. He loved Elizabeth more and more with each passing day. "Burke's seven are back, baby!"

"Don't." said Peter through gritted teeth

Sara inserted the key in the lock, an action she had done many times over the past months, however, not once had this little action meant so much. She was actually unlocking her past and her future at the same time. She sighed turning the doorknob…

There was only one light on coming from the living room. She walked there and found Emily sleeping peacefully at the coach; jet-lag for sure… Sara took her shoes off to not disturb her and went to put on a quilt over her; she took the time to really look at her. So much had changed, yet her features somehow looked the same. Sara couldn't be that mad at her, could she? Emily was her blood and there had to be a way to amend things. She only wished she knew how. She didn't remember what it was to have a sister, she only remembered bits and pieces but the daily routines were lost on her, blocked by her subconscious.

Emily stirred and suddenly opened her eyes lazily "hey you're home" she said looking up at Sara who had a deer-caught-in-the-light look.

"Um, yeah but you should keep on sleeping, you must be tired. Jet-lag and all. You can take the guestroom" she said motioning for her

Emily followed quietly entering a beautiful room decorated in green shades with modern impeccable furniture that made it look like a fancy hotel room "Wow, you have a beautiful home, Sara. You've done so good for yourself"

Sara looked down feeling awkward "Um, thanks. I just moved here a few months back"

Emily kept on looking around the room and then at Sara for a whole minute smiling "Little Sara… look at you! I feel so proud of you. I mean, you have become such a successful and gorgeous woman! Life has been very kind to you!"

That was intended as a compliment but Sara felt stabbed in the stomach and just like the Kraken gets awaken to cause a storm, something came from very deep within her, blinding her and erasing all kinds of self-control she might had been able to build around. It was something about her words and the way she said them that triggered this feeling. She couldn't help but let out a bitter and cold laughter, followed by an even colder reply "Life is not kind. You go and make it kind for you all by yourself, otherwise you just get screwed"

Emily frowned "what do you mean? I mean, finding you again has been the best thing that has ever happened to me and that's what I call life being kind to me"

Sara cut her off "Please! You don't seriously expect me to just burst into song for your sudden return to my life, do you? Or to happily receive compliments now from someone who just didn't give a shit about me"

Emily felt a sharp pain in her chest, she couldn't help but let out a few tears "Sara, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to leave you…" she said coming closer to her but then again was stopped

"Don't. Of course you didn't mean to" Sara said sarcastically "But you left me, Emily and never looked back! You didn't even say good bye!" said Sara starting to lose it. So much for not wanting to let anything out yet…

Emily seemed to be nailed to the floor, not moving, just staring "I'm sorry. I was just a frightened teenager and didn't realize I was leaving you alone, I mean you were always the strong one and mom and dad just loved you. Me, they hated…"

"Yeah right… do you know how hard it was to grow up trying to please dad without succeeding? Or to even get mom to actually look at me in the eye without being lost in some weird alcohol or drug-induced world?" said Sara continuing with her rant

"Yeah, mom and dad screwed us pretty bad, huh?" said Emily trying to be a little emphatic

"Shut up. Dead people can't defend themselves" said Sara coldly with red cheeks and eyes ready to explode with tears but withholding them painfully

"What?"

"Surprise! Mom and dad died in a car accident 5 years after you left" said Sara storming out of the room into the kitchen, needing water, a distraction… an open oven to put her head inside or some sort of dramatic situation that could make her feel less dramatic herself.

Emily let tears fall down now freely. So much she had missed and Sara! She had been through so much… alone. She wiped the tears, straightened herself and went to look for her. She found her pouring scotch in a glass.

"Sara…" she called shyly "I don't know what to say… I'm just… sorry, so so sorry. I should have been there for you"

Sara looked at her for a minute "Why did you leave?" came her voice quietly

Emily took a step closer "can I have some of that?" asking for a drink too. Sara pushed her glass towards her letting it slide over the counter.

"I'm not as strong as you are, Sara. I always felt like I didn't belong to that house. I had dreams and aspirations which were never heard. You were the only good thing that I ever took out of them… you were the most precious gift that life ever gave me and yet… I let it go and believe me, I regret it every day but there was no way in hell that I could've been happy for you if I wasn't happy for myself. And right after that day with dad, well… selfishly, I just decided to leave" she finished seating on one of the stools at the counter.

"What happened with dad?" asked Sara, more calmed now

"Well, I had been secretly taking ballet lessons, only mom knew about it and I wanted to become the best to make dad proud of me. So I started working really hard and I actually got a scholarship for the NY Ballet summer school. God I was so happy! So I dressed in my best ballet outfit, a beautiful white leotard with beautiful feathers in my head and waited for dad to come home to give him the good news…" she made a pause to give a long gulp of the bitter liquid "when dad got home, I told him I had a new mission in life and gave him the envelope… he gave me a disgusted look and just said _'what kind of attire is that? Has life given you the mission of being a hooker or what?'_ – more or less that's what he said"

Sara frowned and looked down "I'm sorry to hear that. Dad was not very open-minded"

"Yeah well, it hurt too much to hear those words but it hurt even more that mom just stood there, she didn't put a word in for me and just remained quiet. I felt so betrayed… Of course later on she just got drunk and problem solved" said Emily now looking really pissed

Sara didn't know this part of Emily's story and she could imagine how painful it might have been. She felt like she should say something but she couldn't.

Emily downed the whole glass of scotch "So I just left. I wanted to be a ballerina and I damn well did it, with or without them. It wasn't probably reason enough to run from home but I was a teen and I was tired of them making me feel like crap all the time so…"

"You became a ballerina?" asked Sara with genuine wonder

Emily smiled "Yeah. I went to NY and took the scholarship, slept on hostels and under bridges sometimes but I managed to get a job later and one thing led to the other until I finally went to ballet school in Prague, then to so some folk dancing in Buenos Aires and finally on Broadway and stuff like that. I didn't turn out to be the kind of ballerina I had dreamed of but close enough I guess"

Sara gave her a small smile "I'm happy to hear that. You must feel very proud of yourself"

Emily chuckled "Yeah, I guess you're right. Life hasn't been kind to me either, I'm the one who has made it kind for myself"

Sara smiled "See? Told you" she teased

"Yeah yeah, you're always right, Sara" she said with mock-exasperation and then added more sheepishly "Although I'm not so proud of everything I've done and ironically, that's why I came to you for help. Of course I didn't know it was you I would be facing. Neal played a good one on us there!" said Emily smirking and shaking her head in disbelief "Speaking of Neal… I saw the picture in your hall, care to explain a certain shiny thing in your finger there?" she said with a mischievous smile… when Emily saw the picture she had thought that the only woman who could have Neal if she couldn't have him, was Sara. Now the question was, since when did Neal know they were sisters? Is that why he refused to sleep with her? It all started to make sense but then again, they did fool around quite a lot! She felt a little disgusted. 'Ugh, men… such pigs' – she thought.

Sara raised a questioning eyebrow "Not now, it's a long story. First you tell me why you're here"

Emily sighed "Ok… here it goes" – she proceeded to tell her everything about the Fabergé eggs and actually showed her the winter egg

"Oh my God! You've got to be kidding!" said Sara covering her mouth in shock "Am I supposed to come into the office tomorrow and say 'hey look what the Easter bunny dropped in my door!?"

"I don't know… Neal said you would know what to do" was the naïve answer that came from Emily

"Does Peter Burke know about this?" asked Sara already guessing the answer

"The FBI agent? Of course not! Only Mozzie knows" said Clarice

Sara looked up for divine enlightenment and cursing silently "Damn you, Caffrey"

After two hours of convincing Peter and the Harvard crew that his plan to catch Taylor could actually work, Neal got out of the conference room, exhausted "See you later for dinner, Peter" – he grabbed his phone and dialed a familiar number "Hello miss Grace Kelly, this is yours truly, Cary Grant. How does working with Gordon Taylor and not getting caught by the FBI, sound?" said Neal charmingly on the line. "Meet me tomorrow at 42nd and Broadway"

After a while of thinking and pacing around the kitchen while making herself a salad for dinner, Sara came up with the idea of actually making the chocolate festival real using Neal's friend, Chef Rushkind, and asking him to have someone from his staff call Sterling Bosh to report anomalies into one of the samples and that way they could just send a field agent to claim the stolen egg. The sisters were beaming at their clever plan and even made a toast with a freshly opened bottle of wine while they ate their salad. They smiled shyly at each other…

"I am happy you're here… just give me some time ok? I am pissed too" said Sara making Emily laugh hard

"You got it sister. Take all the time you need. I won't be going anywhere" said Emily smiling

"Thanks…" Sara smiled back "Alright, we just need to talk further with Neal about our plan but he must be at work now so we should better get to sleep and skype tomorrow morning"

Emily noticed that every time Sara mentioned Neal or heard his name, she acquired this special glint in her eye and surely knew his schedule very well… "Do you guys keep close?"

"I said that story was for another day" said Sara with a little knowing smile playing on her lips

Emily looked uneasy, both of them talking with Neal at the same time on Skype. She was not the one who would bring this on Sara but Neal would. She would make sure of it. If one thing was for sure was that Emily would make up for all those years not stepping up for her little sister and if Neal was being a son of a bitch, she would make sure he pays for it.

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**Thank you so much for your thoughtful reviews! They seriously make my day! **

**And also, apologies for any gramatical mistakes. English is not my first language and I hadn't said anything about it because I'm trying hard to not make it an excuse for lousy writing, I figure if I'm daring to write in English is because I will just do it as good as it should be but still, just wanted to coment on that... (if you saw my profile you already knew this though LOL)**

**For all you fellow Sara fans, I read today on Twitter that Hilarie Burton said she would come back for Season 6 and would start filming on April/May... if that's true, OH MY! **


	21. Chapter 21

Hello! Here's a short chapter, please be patient I promise I'll write more during the week. Thanks so much for your feedback, always really appreciated!

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**Chapter 21**

"… So I grabbed him by the collar and shoved him to the wall, you know? Making sure he knew I meant business. Man you should've seen his face! He was peeing himself! Everybody was cheering for me and justice prevailed!" – while driving home to have dinner with Elizabeth, Peter was animatedly telling a high school story of how Burk the Smurf disappeared and finally the bullies stopped harassing him; that and a lot of inches later of course, he took his time to grow all the way into college. But Neal was not paying attention at all, he was lost in thought, too many things clouding his mind.

"Neal? Neal? NEAL!"

"What! Hey Peter, no need for yelling, I'm right here!" said Neal annoyed

Keeping his hands on the wheel, Peter briefly turned with a questioning eyebrow "Trouble in con-land?"

Neal frowned and then sighed "I know I'm gonna regret telling you this but here it goes… I'm worried about Sara… and Emily"

"About them getting along or about them sharing best practices on Caffrey's bed skills?" teased Peter

"Ugh, Peter! This is why I hide things from you" pouted Neal "but if you really wanna know, the first option is what worries me"

Peter chuckled "Sure…"

"It is, Peter! It's a very touchy subject for Sara and… fine, it's killing me to know that I almost committed some sort of incest!" admitted Neal looking out the car window

Peter smiled, proud that Neal finally was getting used to being honest with him "Don't be ridiculous Neal, that's not incest and you didn't know she was Sara's sister so in all due time, I'm sure she will understand"

It was Neal's turn to look at him with a raised eyebrow "Peter, it's painful to see you being such a lousy liar. Do you REALLY believe what you just said?"

"Not really, I'm just trying to be comforting. But what I do believe is that Sara is a smart woman and she'll understand. She lives in London anyway, so why do you care so much? Both of you will eventually find a partner" said Peter focused on the road but when he didn't get a response from Neal, he turned to look at him. Neal was just looking down playing nervously with his hat. It downed on Peter… "Ooohh you were hoping to go back to Sara and that's why you're so fussed about this! Is that it?"

Neal sighed "Brownie points for your deductive skills…"

"But Neal, long distance? Seriously?" asked Peter grimacing

"For now… and before you start getting ideas, no, I'm not escaping illegally but one day the anklet will come off and well…" stopped Neal not being able to even talk about that beautiful possibility which still seemed so far away.

Peter smiled, it was good hearing Neal planning a white-picked-fence existence post-anklet "Well, all I can say is that you need to be honest and then from there, fight like hell to show her how much you care about her, what she means to you and make every moment count"

Neal was looking in awe at Peter. That was good advice and he felt a lump in his throat thinking how great it would have been to hear these words from his father… "Thanks Peter" he said shyly looking down

Peter nodded. They remained quiet, enjoying each other's company in a comfortable silence.

When they arrived at the Burke's, the minute they opened the door, they almost fainted at the delicious smell coming from the kitchen "Oh God! It smells great! Honey we're here!" said Peter patting Neal in the back with a smile. It was good coming home. Neal secretly wanted to come home to this, although it would probably be with a little role-reversal, him cooking and Sara yelling 'honey I'm home' – Neal chuckled at his daydreaming and shook his head. Oh boy, he had changed.

**Meanwhile in London…**

Sara lay still in bed, not being able to sleep, too restless with everything that had happened in just one day. It almost felt like she had dreamed it but no, her sister was actually sleeping next door. She smiled at the thought because even when she still had too many feelings boiling inside her, she felt happy. She grabbed her phone and texted Neal "Thanks for bringing Emily back. You never fail to amaze me, Caffrey"

Neal received the text message while he sipped some wine waiting for the lasagna to be ready. It was an odd time in London, he figured Sara had insomnia so he went to the backyard and decided to start a little Whatsapp chat:

N: At your service, Repo! So everything's good now?

S: mmm…

N: that's a maybe?

S: maybe

N: well that's better than 'it sucks', right?

S: yeah…

N: give it some time. Miss you!

S: *smiley face* me too

N: are you lying in bed? Too restless?

S: yes but don't get any ideas Caffrey

N: *sad face*

S: What about you, ANGEL?

N: why thank you! You're an angel too! I'm having dinner at Peter's

S: Say hi to them. Emily called you angel, not me

N: Emily's a very sweet girl

S: I know you're hiding something from me. What happened between you two?

N: she hasn't told you?

S: I haven't asked

N: I see. Well you should focus on the more important things now

S: right, can we skype in 4 hours? I have an idea to fix her problem

N: sure thing, go back to sleep, it's 3 am over there!

S: Oh I thought you wanted to know what I was doing restless in bed?

N: *sad face* can't, lassagna with the Burke's awaits for me

S: Nighty night

N: Nighty

"What's with the frown, Neal? Everything alright?" asked a very perceptive Elle

Peter was quick to answer for him in a sin-sang voice "Neal's got a little sister problem"

"Peter, I'm glad you find in me a source for fun but I appreciate it if you could stop?" said Neal annoyed

Elle smiled at their playful banter "Hon, play nice with Neal. So you're helping Sara's sister I hear"

While eating delicious lasagna, Neal proceeded to tell her all about his plan, purposefully ignoring Peter's grunts every time he mentioned something illegal. "You know, I shouldn't even be hearing this. How am I supposed to keep my mouth shut?" said the very upset Agent Burke

"Didn't you grant Neal full immunity once, hon? Well, this time you have spousal immunity, Neal" said Elle winking

Neal smiled "Thanks, Elle. I didn't have a choice really. Emily is not a consummated thief, she just has been through a lot and made wrong choices and I know, Peter, you always say that law fits all but still, I'm not a law-man so this falls into a gray area to me and that's why I didn't want to get you involved… sorry" he finished sheepishly

Peter sighed "I know you mean right, Neal, it's just… ah hell, you're too frustrating!"

Elle caressed Peter's forearm gently to calm him down while Neal just nodded "I should better go. Thanks for dinner" said Neal standing up and heading for the door

Elle gave Peter one of those looks which made him puff air through his nostrils and without a word stood up "Neal, wait"

Neal turned around from the door. Peter put a hand on his shoulder almost afraid of touching him and for a couple of seconds didn't say anything "Just, be careful ok?"

Neal relaxed and smiled a typical Caffrey smile "Of course Peter"

"No, I mean it. The reason why I'm always giving you the be-careful-speech is because I would hate for you to go back behind bars, Neal. You're much too valuable for me… and not only as a CI" said Peter looking right into Neal's eyes meaning every unspoken word.

Neal frowned looking back and understanding the unspoken meaning but this time, it wasn't enough, he needed to hear Peter say it out loud. "What do you mean, Peter?"

It was Peter's turn to frown, knowing exactly what Neal was doing. He sucked at being emotional but he knew he owed it to Neal, who at least on his feelings had been more forward always letting him know how valuable his trust was or how family doesn't turn up on your step after 30 years but sticks with you through thick and thin. Peter looked down for a minute and then looked up smiling "What I mean is that I would hate to bring you good coffee to jail. You are very important to me, Neal. You're my friend. Hell you're like the little brother I never had or God help me, the son I wish to have someday"

Neal was pushing for a little more but not so much! He was in shock and his eyes got all watery as he usually got them when being emotional. He cleared his throat feeling awkward not knowing what to say "Um, thanks"

Peter laughed "Oh no, not fair. You wanted me to say it, now you cowboy up and handle it, young man"

Neal smiled awkwardly "I'll be careful, I promise. Thanks for everything" he said not being able to go for much more

Peter patted his back "Alright, I get it buddy. Go home. See you tomorrow"

Neal started walking for a little while before catching a cab, reflecting on everything that had happened. He truly had a family here, he was happy and he just had to admit to himself that even when James had been a piece of crap, if it hadn't been for his abandonment, he would've never found Peter. It was a twisted way of seeing things but those are the types of findings you have in life. Same thing with Sara and Emily… which reminded him, he had a skype conversation to follow through in an hour. He hailed a cab and went home with a big smile on his face.


	22. Chapter 22

**As promised... another one!**

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**Chapter 22**

Neal arrived home whistling a random tune; he poured some wine and got comfortable on his pajama bottoms and a tank top. He turned on the laptop, having 10 minutes yet to spare, he started drawing a Fabergé egg just out of boredom.

Sara on her side, had just gone out of the shower, she was running late having been awake for almost all night falling asleep only an hour ago. She wrapped a towel around her and almost ran to the kitchen to pour some coffee and be a little more alert. She found Emily already reading the morning paper there and sipping coffee

"Morning Sara! You've got great Italian roast, want some?" she said cheerfully

"Yes. Thank you" she said grabbing a mug "How long have you been awake?"

"Let's just say that jet-lag is not going soft on me. I just came back from a morning jog so if you don't mind I'm gonna go take a shower too" she said with a big smile

"Please help yourself" said Sara turning on her computer and finding a very artsy Neal looking down, deep in concentration drawing something

"Midnight inspiration hit you?" she teased

"Hi Sara!" he said looking up with a smile which got even wider when he saw her state of undress "Inspiration just hit me now that my midnight muse showed up... You're killing me! Why so provocative? You got something in mind?" he said raising his eyebrows suggestively

She snorted "No, I'm late and I just ran from the shower. We need to make this quick"

"Quick is not my thing but whatever pleases you" he said still playing around

She laughed "Quick is not my thing either, Caffrey. I thought you knew that?"

"I do. In fact, you have never complained with me" he said licking his lips absentmindedly

Sara let her towel slip just a little bit on purpose "Oops… let me fix that" and she laughed hard when she saw Neal's reaction. He pretty much had his eyes open so wide she thought he might popped the globes out.

"You know, this isn't fair. You do realize I'm alone here and it's midnight and you have to go to work" he said pouting

"Awww poor baby. I'll make it up to you when I go there on Christmas" she said lowering her voice

"Yes you will!" he said

"Yes, I will" she repeated, louder this time

"Oooh so you aren't waiting for me to witness the blessed event? You're already saying 'Yes I will' without the guests around?" came the voice from the long lost older sister surprising both of them

Neal paled to the point of snow. He was grateful for the poor lighting in his apartment that could disguise his ghost-tan "Hi Clarice or… um, Emily?"

Emily came to sit next to Sara smiling wickedly at Neal "Emily's fine. Hi Neal, long time no see"

Sara was just quiet witnessing the familiar exchange between the two. She could tell that Neal had this tiny flicker of nervousness in his eyes but was doing a very job at hiding it. On her part, Emily was just smiling too much, as if wanting on purpose to intervene in this conversation.

"Neal, I haven't thanked you properly. I mean, bringing me back to my sister, who is by the way your fiancée? Wow! You had me surprised there! Although, I haven't seen you wearing the ring, Sara? And Neal, how exactly will it work with your anklet?" asked Emily with the same wicked smile

Sara frowned not liking her tone or the fact that she was just being annoying with her private life, which by the way, didn't know anything about, therefore, didn't have the right to be getting into "Emily, with all due respect, that is none of your business. I told you that's a story for another day"

Neal would've smiled and high-fived Sara if he could. That's my girl, he thought, but instead he took the opportunity to gain some points for him. Can you blame him? He had to grasp whatever he could "Emily, I didn't know you and Sara were related until that day you told me so yourself and that's when I came up with the idea of getting you to contact her. And yes, Sara and me, well we have a complex yet beautiful story of which, I will endorse her, the right to share. But all I can say is that she's very important to me"

Sara gave him a shy smile as a sign of gratitude and asked "So how did you meet?"

Emily frowned and looked directly at Neal. He seemed sincere… "I tried stealing his wallet" she said in a hurry before he could say anything else, trying to control the conversation. She figured for now, she wouldn't push him further.

"What? Are you kidding me?" said Sara amused

"Of course I couldn't. He caught me and from there, well we became friends. Right, Neal?" said Emily looking pointedly at Neal getting him to agree on her story

Neal understood and nodded thanking her silently for not letting their little secret out yet. However, he knew Emily wouldn't let it go that easily but for now, he took whatever lifesaver he could get "Ah, yeah. She is not as good as thief as she is as a ballerina"

"You've seen her perform?" asked Sara now curious and with a little amazement

"Oh yes, she is amazing! She owns the stage and you should've seen the audience, clapping furiously, standing ovation and all. Even Peter was flabbergasted and he is not easily impressed. Your sister can tango!" said Neal making his best to praise Emily with admiration, which was actually true

"Wait, tango?! And you were with Peter?! I think I'm missing a lot of information here. You obviously have some catching up to do with me but right now we don't have time, we need to find a way to get her out of this mess" said Sara shivering a little from the already wet and cold towel around her body. Emily noticed and went to grab a small blanket from the coach putting it around Sara's shoulders.

Neal saw the exchange and smiled. Sara needed so much pampering even when she never asked for it or even admitted needing it; and he was glad there was now another person to do it aside from him "Yeah, so tell me Repo, what's your plan?"

"Repo? What kind of pet name is that? I think I'm the one who needs some catching up to do with you two" said Emily looking directly at Neal with a raised eyebrow. Him, in return, just looked back, not even blinking but understanding the message loud and clear. "But for now, thank you both for helping me with my little predicament"

"Sure, no problem. Anything for Sara's sister" said Neal looking at Emily seriously

Sara didn't miss the looks that they were passing with each other but decided it was a pursuit for another day. It was getting late and she needed to get to work "So I'm thinking your friend, Chef Rushkind, can help us"

"Yes, good idea! I can call him right away. Just be careful with the other eggs, make sure no prints are left on them and make sure you clean them very well, so no pollen or any US dust particle ends up in one of them" said Neal

"Dust particle? Seriously? Are we dealing with The X-files or what?" asked Emily incredulous

"No, but it's Interpol, darling. You can't be too careful with them" said Neal trying to be patronizing

Little did he know, it just pissed her off more "I get it, darling; it's nice to hear you calling me that again" she said smirking in a very evil way

Neal immediately erased the cocky smile from his face gulping and turned quickly to look at Sara who was slightly frowning "Okay! So it looks like we have a plan!" he said excitedly trying to break the tension

Emily gave him a cocky smile "Thanks, Neal, you truly do justice to your reputation as the best conman ever"

"Reformed conman; right, Sara?" he asked with voice full of hope and a traditional vintage good ol' Caffrey-smile

Sara just kept looking at him and Emily took that opportunity to stop pestering him. She would have to confront him some other time "Leave my little sister alone, you liar" she said playfully attempting to joke but actually meaning every word of it, that is, to Neal's ears only of course. "See you around Neal, thank you once again. I'll leave you two alone now" and she parted to lock herself in her room.

Neal was more than grateful for Emily's departure "She is quite a handful, isn't she? You two are nothing alike, I mean, besides the physical resemblance, you're like oil and water"

"Is that a good thing?" asked Sara amused. Neal seemed giddy

"Well, nothing beats an original. That applies to art and people" he said charmingly

"She is older you know? So that would make her the Ellis original…" started Sara but was interrupted

"No no no, to me, you are the one and only. No forgery or replica can match your perfection" he said truthfully

"Why, Caffrey! You're being quite the sweet-talker today!" she said sarcastically "Is there a particular reason, darling? Did you do something wrong that I should know about?" she said with particular emphasis on the word 'darling'

Neal smiled cynically "Now that's skeptic of you, Miss Ellis. I'm just stating the obvious"

Sara chuckled and shook her head at his impossible charm "Thanks for not telling her anything about us. I don't feel comfortable yet sharing that kind of private information"

Now that was a surprise to Neal. He wasn't expecting a thank you when the reason he didn't say anything was to cover his own ass but then again, he was a lucky guy and he usually got his way so… "You have nothing to thank me for, Sara. I'm just glad to help. After everything you've done for me, it's the least I could do" he said avoiding a straight answer and also without lying.

"Okay…" she said smiling shyly

"So, can we talk tomorrow? I mean, later today for you? Keep me posted on how it goes with Rushkind? Please be careful, Sara" said Neal with true concern

"Sure, you sleep now…" she said nodding reassuringly

Neal wanted to tell her how much he needed to be close to her and all the things that came to mind every time he saw her but managed to just plant a kiss on his index finger and place it on the screen where her face was "Can I have a kiss back? You know, a good-night kiss?" he asked sweetly

Sara laughed embarrassed "Are we ten?"

"Were you already kissing boys at ten?!" he said gasping playfully which made her laugh even more "Sara, after your little towel-dropping act, this is the least thing you can do and believe me, I have the urge to ask for so much more" he said giving her a predatory look

Sara blushed a little and arranged her wet hair behind her ear "You're right. But you have to close your eyes, this is embarrassing Neal!"

"Can't see you if I close them and the whole purpose of this Skype thing is to actually see you" he said as if talking to a 5 year-old

"Ugh, fine!" she said and proceeded to kiss her finger and place it on the screen as well. Neal placed his palm on the screen and then closed it to place it on his chest where his heart was supposed to be. She just smiled like a fool "You are such a romantic, Caffrey"

"This is what you've made me, it's your fault! From conman to hopeless romantic; I think Peter will be happy with your masterpiece" he said

"Alright Prince Charming, it's bed time for you. I don't want you blaming me for sleeping in tomorrow with Peter" she said in a scolding tone

"Prince Charming? I thought it was Prince Eric? Are you cheating on me, princess?!" said Neal in mock-offense

Sara laughed "Okay Mr. Comedian, go to sleep now"

"Yes ma'am" he saluted "Sara…?" he started

"Hmm?"

"I um…" he cleared his throat, "I can't wait for Christmas. I really need to see you, hug you and kiss you soon"

Sara blushed, feeling again like a 16 year-old. Only Neal could make her feel like jello "Me too" she said shyly "Sweet dreams, Caffrey" and then hit the 'End call' button.

Someone from a distance, the one who had been called a replica and a forgery, was just looking from afar and longing for what she knew she had lost and actually, never had the chance to have. Neal Caffrey was definitely in-love with Sara and vice versa. They were just too stupid and proud to admit it to each other. Emily shook her head and dried a treacherous tear that rolled down her cheek. She closed the door again, careful to not make any noise. Even when she still needed to talk to Neal and get along better with Sara, having witnessed the last few minutes of their conversation, she finally understood where her place wasn't... She felt a ping of jealousy, Sara always had her way, she was always the good girl, the smart one… and now she had the most amazing guy on the planet, head over heels for her. And what did Sara do? Go away miles away from him, not wanting to admit that she loved him. It was wrong and Emily almost felt the urge to do something about it, life wasn't fair when it came to love and this was definitely a good example.

* * *

**Uh oh... What's Emily up to, now? LOL**

**I know, Caffrey as a hopeless romantic is just not exactly canon but I can't help it! He was a little bit with Kate, remember? Plus, one of the reasons I love this couple so much is the playful and flirtatious banter they have and given the last episodes from Season 4, if Sara hadn't gone away, they would've just turned like this, for sure! Don't deny it, Eastin, you're the biggest Neal/Sara shipper! LOL**


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

Gordon Taylor was a very charming man who enjoyed the simple pleasures of life. Nice cars, nice food, nice wine and nice girls. "Ah Clarice, darling, I keep getting your voicemail, makes me wonder if I have to call the French police? I miss you, you know? Call me back, this heist is getting hot and we have to make it work in two days" – he hung up frowning and went to seat on the edge of the bed. He was staying at a fancy hotel in Soho trying to stay away as much as possible from the Theatre district. He was about to go take a shower when there was a knock on his door.

He looked through the peephole and saw a woman. She looked harmless and gorgeous "why, this must be my lucky day, to what do I owe the pleasure of your sight, darling?"

"It is your lucky day indeed, Mr. Taylor" she said in a very flirty tone extending her hand

"Call me Gordon, miss…?" he said taking her hand and kissing the back of it like the gentleman he was

"Hunter… call me Alex" she said smirking and stepping inside the room

"Um, sure, come on in" he said chuckling

"Gordon, I know all about your little Tony award heist and I want to be a part of it" she said shocking the hell out of him

"Uh… I don't know what you're talking about" he said with a charming smile and a poker face

"Yes you do; I'm a fence, I know these things so cut the little act. I happen to have a very interested client who wants the same thing you're stealing so I thought we should join forces. Plus, my client is willing to double the price" she said going to seat on the bed, leaning on her hands and crossing her legs.

Taylor laughed good-naturedly "Well well, miss Hunter. I'm impressed and tempted but I don't usually betray my clients, it's bad for the reputation you know?"

Alex smiled wickedly "The FBI knows about it too, you know?". At that, Taylor couldn't maintain his poker face so Alex continued "I know you're a man of your word and I'm a big fan of your work so what I'm offering is to share profit and betray a little your client in exchange of not getting caught by the Feds"

"And how exactly is that going to work?" he asked curious

"The FBI has eyes on your point-man, or woman. Clarice is her name, I believe. You need to get rid of her" explained Alex

"What? How do you know so much?" asked Taylor distrusting her more and more

"I told you, I know these things and New York is my, um, jurisdiction, so to speak. Get rid of her, she's an easy target for the FBI and I believe she has been hanging around Neal Caffrey too much so I think she might be trying to betray you" said Alex getting up from the bed and stepping closer to him

"I'm sure you know who Neal Caffrey is and mostly, his connection with the FBI… so, get rid of the lady and just follow my plan. Are you in?" she spoke closely to his face running a finger on his chest

Taylor was very intrigued by this woman and she sure knew a lot. He had to trust her, at least for now, until he found out more "Ok, but the awards are in two days. What's your plan?"

Alex smiled pleased "You're a smart man, Gordon. Buy me lunch first?"

**Meanwhile at the FBI office…**

"Has she contacted you yet?" asked Peter pacing around the conference room

"Not yet. Peter, relax ok? Alex is on our side this time and she is very interested in gaining FBI points after her little Greek escapade" said Neal leaning on the window crossing his arms

Peter sighed, puffing air through his nostrils "I didn't promise immunity. If she goes rogue on us, I'm going after her full force and that includes you too"

"Yes, I know. Now relax, ok? Don't you have a mortgage fraud case you need to review or something?" asked Neal walking out of the room to his desk

"Neal, wait" Peter put his hands on his waist as he usually did when ready to give a lecture or some type of warning "How are things with you and Sara going? Did she manage to fix Emily's problem?"

Neal frowned and put his hands in his pockets "It's all good, Peter, thanks for asking. I gotta go ok? I need to finish that report you asked before lunch. I'd like to head home early if you don't mind, I didn't sleep well last night" and he left not wanting to follow up on awkward emotional conversations at the office. The truth is that Neal was very worried about the whole egg thing, he wasn't there to protect Sara and she was actually running a con all by herself; it just didn't felt right. Of course she could take care of herself but she was supposed to be one of the good guys and now she was wrapped in this mess because of her sister and because of him… he should've thought better! On the other hand, he felt scared shitless at Sara's reaction when she found out about his adventures with Emily and he really wanted to not screw it up with Sara this time. These past days had been an epiphany for Neal, he realized how much he wanted Sara in his life and it wasn't just the idea of having anyone but having HER and now, it was all very edgy.

**In London…**

Sara was feeling nervous, she had just received the call from Chef Rushkind's staff, about the suspicious egg and she had sent a team to do the retrieval. If all this went according to plan, Emily will be cleared from all charges and that meant being free of actually facing a normal life again. It was 6 pm and she decided to head home, if the recovery went well, she'll find out tomorrow and this way she wouldn't look suspicious being all anxious waiting for the news, after all, it was a 10 million dollar piece, sure very valuable but not the most valuable thing they had insured.

Emily was going crazy being 'trapped' in Sara's apartment. She had gone to swim, she watched a movie, read a book, practiced some dancing and now she was just pacing around feeling really anxious. There were too many balls in the air and none within grasp. She decided to text Neal "What are you doing? Can you talk? Skype maybe?"

Neal read the text and sighed. He didn't want to face Emily yet but he might as well do it soon and set things clear. He went home, turned on his laptop and texted back "I'm home. Log in with Sara's account"

Minutes later… "Hi there" she said smiling but not entirely happy

"Is Sara home yet? Have you heard how it is going with the egg?" said a very anxious Neal

"No news yet, I'm worried too. She shouldn't be risking herself so much for me…" said Emily looking ashamed and adjusting herself on her bed. She looked a little pale and with dark circles under her eyes

Neal tilted his head analyzing her for a little bit "It's ok, that's what sisters are for, right?"

Emily smiled shyly "Yeah, I guess…"

"So how's London so far? Is it as good as you remember? Sara told me about that summer you spent together" said Neal casually trying to make conversation. It had been really easy to speak with her before knowing her real name and now, it just felt odd.

Emily smiled immediately "Yeah, that summer was amazing! Though now I haven't been able to go all tourist yet, you know, might get arrested and all…" she said sheepishly

Neal chuckled "I'm sure you and Sara will enjoy some quality time soon"

Emily turned to grab something beside her and showed it to Neal "Care to explain this? Is Sara the reason why you couldn't, um, be with me?"

Neal took a deep breath when he saw the framed picture Emily had in her hands. He remembered that picture; he had it in his phone and saw it almost every day but never thought that Sara would have printed it and framed it. He looked down for a little bit "Yes, it was because of Sara… Thanks for not telling her about us…"

"Don't thank me, Neal. It was a shock to me and I kept my mouth shut for her, not for you" said Emily with a little bitterness "So?"

Neal nodded "Well, Sara is very important to me…"

"Do you love her?" asked Emily as a curious 5 year-old would

"I… um... I think I do" said Neal shyly, not really being able to admit it out loud

Emily kept staring at him as if trying to be a human lie detector… He seemed honestly troubled, it was cute actually. She decided to not push him any further "Ok, so what's the story in this picture?"

Neal felt more nervous than when being interrogated with a polygraph "Well, I did ask her to marry me but it was all part of a con I was running at the time. And before you start yelling at me, Sara knew it was a con and it was the day she left for London"

Emily frowned "how can a proposal be part of a con? Did she live in NY before? Did you two dated? Neal, I'm missing a lot of blanks here"

"I know and I don't think I should be the one filling in them. It's up to Sara to share that part of her life" he said firmly

Emily nodded "fair enough but you can tell me your version. You owe it to me, Neal"

"Ok, what do you want to know" said Neal not really meaning to answer everything

"When did you suspect I was her sister?"

"Um, well at first I just felt attracted to you in a weird way, as if something strange was luring me to you and then, that day on the park, after our little, um, swinging…" he started and was cut off by Emily laughing

"Oh my God, I was so friking frustrated! It was looking very promising, like the best make-out session I've ever had. I swear I hadn't been so aroused in my life and you just decided to stop right there. I swear to God, Neal, if it hadn't been because you were being totally sweet and perfect, I would've slapped you" she said remembering fondly

Neal chuckled "Yeah, I'm sorry about that"

"And what about that day in your house? You totally spaced out, again leaving our business unfinished and as I recall, you were left painfully aware of it!" she said having fun

"Oh you have no idea. I had to take matters in my own hands afterwards…" he said sheepishly

"Ugh, men!" she said mock-disgusted

"Don't blame me, it was your fault!"

"Oh yeah? So you did feel attracted to me sexually after all, huh?" she said playfully

"Who wouldn't? You're a very beautiful woman" he said giving her a typical Caffrey non-answer

Sara had heard enough. She had arrived eager to give Emily the news that while driving home, she was notified by her team that the recovery of the egg was successful and all due paperwork was being processed and the proper calls to authorities had been placed. She heard noise coming from Emily's room and went there to see the door slightly open; she heard she was engaged in a conversation with someone so she decided to leave her to finish when Neal's voice came and made her stop dead in her tracks. She kept eavesdropping and oh what a big mistake it had been…

She ran to her room and slammed the door crying all the way. How could she be so stupid? Falling in love with a man who did nothing but lie to her, over and over.

"What was that?" asked Neal with panic in his voice when hearing clearly a door slamming

"Um, no idea. Shit, I think Sara's home. Do you think she heard us?" she asked with worry herself "I'm going to find out. Bye"

Neal's worst nightmare had come true. If Sara heard them, it was all hell breaking loose now. He felt helpless too, being so far away and not able to do anything. He instantly grabbed his phone and called her… no answer. "Damn it!" he said and slammed an apple from the table against the wall running furiously his hands on his hair.

"Whoa, what happened?" said Mozzie entering the apartment. He knew Neal wasn't a violent person except when someone close to him was threatened.

Neal was breathing hard, eyes disoriented and pacing furiously "Sara heard Emily and me talking about what happened between us"

"But didn't you say you never got to actually plant your flag…"

"No I didn't, Mozz! But we did fool around A LOT and I did not want Sara to find out like this" he said loosening his tie furious

"Oh… so what now? Isn't she coming for Christmas? You can talk to her then, because you can't exactly take a flight and go fix it" said Mozzie trying to be of help

"Shit, Christmas… she won't be coming now… but maybe I can…" said Neal with a little smile

* * *

**So tonight is: WHITE COLLAR NIGHT! **

**I'm very curious to see Bridget Reagan's character tonight... to tell you the truth, this story came to me when I read about Neal's new love interest and saw Bridget's picture. She looked so much like a bookish version of Sara... so, I'm sure Rebecca Lowe won't be Sara's sister but then again, just wanted to share that with you. **

**Let me know if you still like this story please. Your comments are food to my soul :)**


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

"Sara?" - came Emily's shy voice through her bedroom door. No answer. "C'mon Twizzler, I heard you come in, I know you're there. If you want to relive old times and play hide and seek we can do it some other time, promise" she attempted at humor

Sara opened the door violently and with bloodshot red eyes, evidently dried tears and with a very fake smile she stepped out heading for the kitchen "Too late to play hide and seek"

Emily followed suit and just watched her pour some water on a glass "Your name is clear by the way. The police will no longer be looking for you" said Sara business-like "But you will have to make your aliases disappear, the only name without a criminal record is your real one so you can't keep on using the others"

Emily nodded feeling relieved "Thank you, it's um, really great to hear that. I've been hiding for too long not wanting to be found by mom and dad but I guess now it's pointless…"

"You didn't want to be found by me either then?" asked Sara with a little hurt in her voice

"Of course but I had planned to look for you and not the other way around. But I guess time took care of that" she said smiling "I can't tell you enough how happy I am to be here with you, Sara. You're the best thing that ever happened to me and I just… God, it's just great to be reunited with you again" she finalized with a huge smile

Sara nodded "Ok… so no criminal activity anymore?"

"No, it's over. I promise. I'm gonna be a good girl from now on" she said lifting her hand in a boy-scout salute

Sara smirked "It's good to be a little bad sometimes, you know?"

"Oh? Elaborate please?" asked Emily amused

"I'll just say that my job has led me to perform on gray areas sometimes… but nothing too illegal of course, no criminal record except for a drunken night gone bad" explained Sara with mischievousness

Emily laughed "God, we have to go out sometime and just get wasted and hook up with some guys or something! Just like we did in Islington, remember? But of course, legally allowed in a club now"

Sara laughed hard "Oh my God, that was crazy!"

"Yeah! Let's do it again! You know, hook up with some bad boys and just enjoy ourselves" said Emily already getting giddy with excitement

Sara stopped laughing… "I guess we both have a thing for bad boys, huh?"

Emily gulped. It was time to set things straight and find out the truth between Sara and Neal… "Um, so I guess you heard Neal and me talking before… how much did you hear?"

"Enough. And before you start explaining, stop. I don't wanna hear it, I don't care" said Sara putting a hand up physically signaling she didn't want to deal with this

"I think you care more than you want to admit… how serious was it?" asked Emily seating on a stool at the kitchen and making Sara do the same

Sara sighed and looked down at her fumbling hands "It's complicated… we were kinda serious at some point but then broke off because, well, because Neal's a criminal and then we just kept fooling around and that's it"

Emily frowned. She could feel there was so much more but she wasn't going to push Sara into anything too uncomfortable. She was glad she was even speaking to her willingly "I see… so you remain friends I guess…" Sara nodded and Emily continued "but what about the engagement ring and the picture? Why do you keep it?"

"Because I'm an idiot" deadpanned Sara

"Don't say that. Love makes us do stupid things…" Emily started but was interrupted

"Love? Who's talking about love?" said Sara defensively. Emily looked at her tenderly and with a little smile "Don't look at me like that"

Emily knew she was stepping on fragile ground so she went carefully "Look, I'm sorry I fooled around with Neal, I thought he was just a handsome New Yorker"

Sara was in automatic reply mood "Don't apologize. You didn't know"

"Neal didn't know either… he thought I was just some random ballerina" Emily wasn't planning on defending Neal but she wanted to set things straight and then it would be up to Sara to see what to do about it.

Sara looked at her "Are you defending him?"

Emily chuckled "Hell no. I'm just filling you with missing information so you can have the whole picture. Plus, the bastard owes me too" she said raising an eyebrow

Sara chuckled "He is a bastard"

"Yes, a very charming and sexy bastard" said Emily playfully

Sara returned the smirk "And a very good kisser"

Emily laughed "I'm not sure I should answer that without embarrassing myself but all I can say is, way to go sis!"

Sara snorted "Yeah, but I guess that's over…"

"Are you sure? I mean, it's kinda obvious being that you are here and he's on a radius in New York but still, looks to me that you're pretty hung up on him" stated Emily

Sara moved on the stool kinda restless. Dealing with emotions was not her thing "Yeah, what I meant is that… ok, I'm not gonna lie to you, I did hear you two talking and something boiled inside me but that's fine, me and Neal, it's over so I just have to let it go. My life is here now. Period"

Emily stared at her for a while "Neal's anklet will come off eventually. What if he comes looking for you then?"

Sara tensed at that possibility. She had fantasized about that of course but it was just daydreaming and she was certain that the extremely romantic moment they shared at the Empire State building had triggered those ridiculous fantasies but they were not real "I don't think it would work. Neal and I are just very different people"

Emily took her hand making her look into her eyes "I also heard you two talking this morning and the chemistry you have it's just not for people who are very different, Sara. What you have with Neal, whatever it is, it's very special"

Sara looked away "I don't think I can trust him anymore. He has lied to me too many times"

"Well, he is a conman but has he lied to you personally?" asked Emily

"Yes. For example, a couple of weeks ago he told me he was not seeing anyone and he was with you" explained Sara getting angry again

"Oh that"

"Yes, that"

"Well, as much as it hurts my ego, I have to tell you that we never went all the way there and not because I didn't want to" said Emily

Sara frowned "What do you mean?"

Emily sighed "We did fool around but every time I wanted to go beyond the good ol' making out, he just couldn't"

Sara raised her eyebrows in surprise "He couldn't?!"

Emily laughed "I mean, he could but he didn't want to. Oh boy this is embarrassing… from what I saw through clothes and all, of course he could in a big way but he just didn't want to. Sara, you lucky vixen!"

Sara blushed furiously and laughed nervously "Did he say why?"

"Nope. He just got all flustered and apologized but he kept rejecting me. Though one day, to heal my ego a little, I asked if he was still in love with his past girlfriend and he didn't deny it" explained Emily with a shrug "and now I know you're that girlfriend"

Sara stepped down from the stool and went to open a bottle of wine thinking over and over what Emily just said.

"Look, Sara, you're a smart woman and I'm not here to defend Neal but all I'm saying is that, if you have feelings for him, you should try to at least talk to him and hear his version. That's what I was trying to do today when you heard us, I wanted to ask him what the hell were his intentions with you because no one will mess up with my sister now that I'm here" she said furrowing her brow in deep concentration and passionate about her conviction. Sara just looked at her by the corner of her eye and secretly smiled pleased. It felt good to have someone on her side like this. "And I think, he does care about you a lot, he just needs to come clear with you and to tell you the truth, he might be feeling a little intimidated. Being vulnerable around you is a task for the brave ones"

Sara rose an inquisitive eyebrow "Meaning?"

"See? That look right there. You're like the iron lady, Sara. You've always been like that, so strong and independent, as if you don't need anyone. For a man, it's difficult to come and tell you he wants to protect you and take care of you and not because you can't do it yourself but because he wants to do it out of love and devotion for you… even the confident ones like Neal, might have trouble doing it" finished Emily sipping some wine herself

Sara thought about it for a minute. Emily might be right but Sara had let Neal see her soft side in more than one occasion. He had penetrated that side of her, of course not of her own will, but that was Caffrey, he knew how to open even the most locked doors. "Ok, you might have a point and Neal has done a good job at getting himself into places that I didn't invite him in" she said chuckling remembering with fondness "But still, even if I wanted to, I don't trust him anymore"

"I see… but is there something that could make you trust him again?" asked Emily

"The thing is… I think I have never trusted him… I mean, I met him at his trial and I testified against him because he stole a painting. We started off with the wrong foot from the very beginning" said Sara

Emily chuckled "Sounds romantic… but there must have been something that made you cross the line to start dating him. What was it?"

"I don't know…" said Sara lightly drumming her nails on the counter trying to remember what exactly made her change her perspective on Neal. "I think it was when I found out his girlfriend had been murdered in a plane accident and I could see the pain in his eyes. The same girlfriend for whom he ran from jail to rescue"

"What? Whoa… so that means you saw him different when you saw he had feelings, when he appeared like a human and not just a cold criminal" said Emily in shock at the piece of information she had received "A beautiful criminal, mind you"

Sara chuckled "Yeah well, him being the most gorgeous man I had ever met didn't make it any easier. I distrusted him even more. He smiles and the sun rises; he looks you in the eye and the world seems like a better place. Ugh, he is just impossible…"

Emily laughed "It seems you got yourself your own prince Eric"

Sara smiled "I told him that once… and I said I would brag about it with you if you were around because we were always fantasizing about that damn movie"

"You told him that?!" Emily laughed "as if he needed encouragement! That man's ego is just way too big already"

"Yeah… anyway, I think Neal is just a nice memory and it should remain like that" said Sara suddenly turning serious and somber

"You sure? Is there something we could do to make him come clean and honest about his feelings for you? I mean, his intentions and everything?" asked Emily trying one last time

"We could run a polygraph test" Sara joked

"Lie detector? Yeah right" Emily shook her head and when she saw the look in Sara's face… "You're kidding me! You have submitted Neal to a polygraph before?"

"Yep and he cheated. I still don't know how he did it but you see, even with a polygraph, it's just impossible to make him be honest" said Sara a little sad

Emily thought for a minute… "And what if I made him confess and you could hear without him knowing?"

Sara looked amused "Are you suggesting we run a con on the master of cons?"

"Yes! I can push him, seduce him, try all my best resources to make him succumb so that he can come clean and finally confess that he loves you" said Emily excited

Sara laughed "You're crazy. He wouldn't do that because he knows you're my sister now"

"Yes but what if I put something in his drink, you know like a truth detector, there are some substances to make it happen" said Emily already thinking where to buy them

"Oh my God, you're being serious. Emily, I appreciate your intentions but I don't think that's very nice. Neal might be a liar and all but he has a good heart and it just doesn't seem right and it could be dangerous" said Sara a little worried

"It's not dangerous at all and I'm sure we can get his little friend Mozzie to help us. I promise it will work. C'mon Sara, it's your chance to rescue your knight in distress" teased Emily

Sara smiled shaking her head. She was starting to flashback to her childhood and all the fun she used to have with her sister, always having crazy ideas "Ok… but please promise me it's not gonna hurt him or do anything bad"

"Sara, you'll be able to do all kinds of bad things to him when this is over" said Emily winking

Sara blushed and laughed. This sounded like fun and it was a great way to avoid emotional confrontation. She didn't want to face Neal now, she would just start crying but if Emily helped, then maybe she could somehow manage to do it. For now, she would have to make him suffer. Three lost calls already and 2 voicemails…

"Sara, please answer the phone. I need to talk to you…" and then "Sara, I… please let me explain. I, um… please"

He sounded desperate but he deserved it, she thought pleased. Deep down it hurt to know that he had lied to her and at the same time, she couldn't help feeling sympathy for him.

"How about we spend Christmas together in New York?" Sara asked Emily

"That would be great! But I, um, I kinda ran out of money and I had to leave my apartment in Brooklyn when I ran…" started Emily but Sara cut her off

"It's on me. I was already planning to go there for Christmas, I already have a reservation at the Plaza so I just need to get you a plane ticket" said Sara already getting her phone to get it done

"Holly shit! Thanks Sara! Nothing beats having a rich sister" she said grinning

* * *

**I don't know about you but I'm starting to like Emily again LOL**

**Wow last night's episode! And the way Neal just charmed Rebecca... I mean, holy cow... Neal's charm at its best! And Siegel... poor guy, I did like him! Anyways... Please review! :) **


	25. Chapter 25

**Just a short chapter... enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter 25**

The next few days were hell for Neal. He hadn't heard one word from Sara or Emily, they were just unreachable. He even made his friend Alfred go check on them secretly, just to make sure they were OK with the egg thing. His last attempt had been a huge bouquet of tulips with a "Please, talk to me" card but no response either.

"That man is so in to you, Sara. I mean, look at these flowers! It wouldn't surprise me if he appeared at your door one day, no anklet and all" said Emily truly amazed, no man had ever showed her this kind of attention and she was surprised that Sara could be so strong-willed to not just succumb and forgive him

Sara worried about the possibility of Neal coming to London cutting his anklet. She knew he was very capable of doing it but it would mean 4 more years of prison for him. Nah, he wouldn't be so stupid… would he? He escaped from prison for Kate but then again, Kate had been in danger… hmm… Sara kept thinking over and over.

Sara and Emily had taken the last few days to bond again and just enjoy some quality time. Sara had told Emily about their mom's weird inheritance and they went to claim it together. It was a beautiful old little apartment in Islington and it was full of weird looking paintings and sculptures which turned out were made by their mother. They found a diary as well, full of pictures, quotes and just insights. Their mother was a strange woman who always found a way of escaping to her own world and apparently, all those escapades were to paint or sculpt something. Some of those pieces were truly remarkable and they were truly amazed at their mom's hidden talent which had to be kept a secret from their father who thought that art was a waste of time.

They were seating on the floor at the little apartment sharing a glass of wine and just sharing stories… they stayed quiet for a while…

"How exactly are you planning on making Neal confess?" it was Sara who broke the silence

"With peyote" said Emily seriously

Sara chuckled "yeah right" and when she saw Emily was being serious… "You're serious? C'mon Em, that's absurd. You can't just drug him to confess!"

Emily was delighted to hear Sara calling her Em already, a sign of trust and affection. It was great seeing that their relationship was rebuilding itself - "Why not? And besides, peyote is not harmful, it only creates some hallucinations, it doesn't even create addiction. The ancient Mexican Indians used it for religious rituals"

"And you know this because…?" asked Sara amused

Emily looked sheepish "Well, let's just say I know a lot of things"

Sara laughed; Emily had always been the adventurous type and apparently she had lived on the wild side all these years "I don't want any drugs involved. It's just not right. I want him to be honest fully conscious"

Emily sighed "Fine, but you're missing the fun. Plus the sex could be great afterwards… just saying"

"Oh my God!" Sara was blushing which seemed cute to Emily who only raised her eyebrows teasingly

**Back in New York…**

"Peter, I need to ask you a favor" said Neal closing the door in Peter's office and seating down with determination in his face

Peter just stared at him "Ok…"

"I need you to extend my radius all the way to London, just for a couple of days" said Neal being completely serious. Peter laughed really hard making Neal frown a little hurt "I'm serious"

"Oh I bet you're serious and funny too!" said Peter between his laughter "What makes you think that could even remotely possible?"

"Well, maybe you can argue that my expertise is needed overseas? Or just because you keep claiming to be my friend maybe?" said Neal challenging Peter

That made Peter stop laughing "Don't play the friend card, Neal. Yes, you're my friend and you know I care about you but that is just not possible. Your anklet deal doesn't include conjugal trips and there's nothing I can do about it"

Neal sighed looking down appalled "Sara is not answering my calls. I don't know what else to do"

Peter knew the story of how Sara had heard Neal and Emily talk about their little adventure and he felt sympathy for the young man but when it came to relationship advice, Peter was at a loss of words, he had never faced a cheating-type of situation so he didn't know what kind of advice to give except for… "Just give her some time, Neal"

"Time?! It's been three weeks, Peter! And plus, she said she was coming for Christmas and it's already December 15th, I don't even know if she will come…" said Neal getting up desperate "I'm cutting off my anklet, Peter, whether you authorize it or not"

Peter chuckled "You do that and I'm sending you back to jail right now. Neal, stop it ok? Tell you what, I can ask Elle to give her a call checking up on her about Christmas, I did invite her so…"

"Peter, that would be great!" said Neal getting excited

"Ho, Ho, Ho" Peter mock-laughed as Santa, trying to be funny

Neal just frowned "You can do that again when you get me Sara wrapped in a red bow and nothing else underneath"

Peter grimaced "Bondage won't put you into the good boys list, Neal"

"Oh but it puts me into the good girl's wish list" said Neal grinning and then added "Did you know that 75% of women fantasize about it and…"

"Ugh, stop it" said Peter regretting starting this conversation

"You don't wanna hear it? Elizabeth would appreciate you getting educated in these things" said Neal

"No! Well, maybe some other day… But for now, I'm still waiting on that case report for Taylor's case… don't know what's taking you so long" said Peter taking control of this conversation again

Neal winced "Oh c'mon Peter, you arrested the guy, do you really need so many details?"

"Yes, now get the hell out of here and finish it up already. Oh and don't leave Alex's name out, we need to make it as realistic as possible so that she can be cleared later"

"Whatever, Santa. As long as you keep the good presents coming, this elf can work his ass off" said Neal groaning. He was in no mood of writing a report but maybe putting his mind into something of use would make him calm his anxiety.

**Two days later, Heathrow airport in London…**

"C'mon twizzler, all on board!" said a very excited Emily walking to the boarding gate

"You know, that nickname is embarrassing" said Sara a little annoyed

Emily smiled enjoying the pestering "Oh but it's cute and accurate"

Sara groaned "It might have been accurate but I'm not that skinny now, plus my hair is not even so red anymore"

"Whatever, miss curvy" said Emily rolling her eyes

Sara secretly enjoyed the playful banter with her sister, it is something she missed a lot. Buckling up on her first class seat, she reflected on how so many things had changed in her life in the past few months. She was happy with the outcome but she felt very apprehensive about her situation with Neal. She did love him, she finally admitted to herself, but there was very little she could do about it now. He was still on his anklet and she had a nice life in London. He had asked her "what do you want from me" a few months back; he had offered to wait for her and she knew she had promised to give Neal an answer once they met again but with everything that had happened, she didn't know what to think anymore. She knew that the minute she locked eyes with him, all bets were off. She needed to build a strong fortress around her heart and make up her mind…

"Stop over thinking" came Emily's voice as if guessing her thoughts. Sara looked at her surprised wondering how she could've read her mind "I know you're over analyzing everything, especially about Neal. Stop it"

"I'm not…" she sighed frustrated "fine, I can't help it" she said running her hands on her hair and settling on her seat

"I know but sometimes it's ok to let your heart decide you know? Your brain is too strong and it won't let your heart mess it up, believe me. So just trust your instincts, they won't fail you. And for God's sake, just enjoy the trip, it's a vacation. We'll go shopping, clubbing… and when you get to face Neal, if it feels right in there" she said pointing at Sara's chest "then your brain will know too and do the right thing"

"When did you become so wise?" asked Sara half-joking

"It was back in my peyote time" joked Emily making Sara laugh

Being with Emily, it was good and whatever happened, Sara knew she wasn't alone anymore so finally she relaxed.

"We're ready for take-off, passengers please buckle up. Flight to New York City will be landing in about 8 hours. No electronic devices are allowed until the sign is turned off…" came the pilot's usual speech in the intercom…

New York City, here I come, thought Sara. Come what may…

* * *

**Disclaimer: Kids, stay away from drugs, even it it's harmless peyote LOL. **


	26. Chapter 26

**I'm so sorry for my absence. Rough days at work and plus, this past episode with drugged Neal was so perfect that I had to change a little what I had planned in my story... Though I think I like it better now, I hope you do too! **

**So, here's a short chapter building to some really cool stuff... I think ;)**

* * *

**Chapter 26**

"Neal, for the millionth time, I don't know when is Sara coming to NY and no, I cannot just look into airport records without a warrant" came the tired words of Agent Burke as if talking to a 5 year-old

Neal was playing with rubber bands, twisting them into his fingers as mock-guns and throwing them into the wall of Peter's office "C'mon, Peter! Can you ask Elizabeth to call her? Please?! Mozzie doesn't want to do stake-out's at the airport anymore"

"Just relax ok? She said she was coming for Christmas Eve dinner so you'll see her for sure in two days. In the meantime, go and make yourself useful. I'm gonna go grab some lunch" said Peter walking out leaving a very frustrated Neal

After a while of just building the rubber-band ball again on his desk… "Caffrey, you're an idiot!" said Neal out loud, making his bullpen fellas look at him oddly. He practically ran to get his coat and hat and went down the elevator. He suddenly remembered that Sara said she would book a room at the Plaza, so there was a good chance she was already there and oh what a beautiful coincidence, it was in his radius.

Neal arrived at the Plaza and started scanning the place around, he peeked into the Palm restaurant and then went up in to the little bar across from the front desk. No sign of Sara. He took a deep breath and went to the front desk pretending to be speaking on the phone, making sure he was being heard… "Oh baby, c'mon! I'm already here and you said to meet me at 1 o'clock, didn't you say you couldn't wait to see me? Fine, I'll do that but please hurry alright? I've missed you so much!" then he hung up with a big smile to the receptionist – "Can you believe her? 6 months away from New York and she can't help running to get a pretzel from Central Park instead of meeting her boyfriend!"

The lady in the front desk was pretty much smiling and under the Caffrey spell "What can I do for you, sir?"

"Sara Ellis' room please?" he said with the most charming smile he could manage

The lady was lost on his very blue eyes "Um, let me see… she didn't give instructions to provide a card key for anyone, sir, I'm sorry"

Neal almost cried from happiness finally confirming she was in town and staying here too. "Oh, that's ok. I'll just go and run some errands while she gets here. Thanks! And oh, one last thing, she said she was getting the presidential suite, did she? I would love to have some flowers delivered there when she arrives"

"Um, yeah she did. What kind of flowers would you like me to send up there?" said the very kind and indiscreet Mary Rose, front desk lady.

"Some red roses please, name's Neal Caffrey. Thank you Mary Rose, you're very kind" said a very kind Neal himself and with a wink, he left to 'bump accidentally' on a security guard to lift his security card and access the elevators to go all the way up to the presidential suite.

He knocked on the door and took a deep breath…

"Oh it's you…" she said opening the door and walking back inside without a second look at Neal

"Emily… hi" he said stepping inside

She sat down on a very comfortable looking couch in the living room of the suite. It was an amazing and very luxurious place. Neal was looking around frantically looking for the other Ellis sister and not finding her anywhere. He felt nervous but also excited to see her again. Once he finished scanning the room without luck, he came back where Emily was seating. He looked at her with a little smile; it was something between amazement and embarrassment. Emily returned the look with a little mischief "So, what's up, Neal? Sara's not here"

Neal smiled shaking his head and finally sat down as far from her as he could. Emily laughed "For God's sake, Neal, I'm not gonna rape you"

He chuckled and went to sit next to her "Is this better?"

"Yes, much better..." she stared at him with a smirk "You're one very good-looking son of a bitch, you know"

He laughed "You're not so bad yourself" he said with a sexy smile and Emily just glared with a frown. Neal cleared his throat "Look, Emily, I'm sorry…"

"Don't. I actually don't regret what happened" she got closer to him and ran a hand on his hair

Neal got a little nervous and pulled back slightly making her stop. She tilted her head looking amused… "Can I ask you something and get an honest answer from you?"

"Of course!" he answered a little too quickly making Emily raise an eyebrow "Opposite to popular opinion, I can be honest"

"Right…" she said and looked at him straight in the eye "Why didn't you want to sleep with me? And don't give me that shit about you being so in love with Sara because I know for a fact that every man, given the right incentive, can perform just fine and you weren't the exception. It was evident that your body was more than ready from what I saw…"

Neal took a deep breath "Honestly? Well… you reminded me too much of Sara and I just couldn't…" – he sighed and looked straight at her – "I do love her"

Emily looked back. She knew he was being honest. That look on a man's face was just impossible to fake, even for an expert like Neal. Emily longed to see those eyes fixed on her and even though she felt happy for Sara having him like this, she felt a little jealous and sad… "Does she know you love her?"

Neal looked down and fidgeted with his hat "Yes, I have said so…"

Somehow, Emily doubted it was clear to Sara, "Then why aren't you together?" she asked with a raised eyebrow

Neal sighed "I don't think she feels the same way…"- Emily snorted making Neal look up "Oh is this amusing to you?"

"Yes it is fun to watch actually" she said standing up and walking to the window. This was ridiculous, if two people loved each other they should be together, it's as simple as that. Love was very hard to find and it shouldn't be this complicated when found. "Why do you think Sara went to London?"

"Because it was a great job opportunity and she's very happy doing what she does" was Neal's automatic response

Emily turned around frowning "What about you, Neal?" and when she saw confusion in his face, she tried again "Why didn't you stop her?"

He licked his lips, he felt thirsty all of a sudden "Because I want her to be happy"

"And you think she is happier being away from you?" she asked

"She's happy doing her job and I… can't make her stay" he said with despair in his eyes

"Why? Why didn't you propose for real?" she asked on the verge of desperation. For such a smart man, Neal was dense when it comes to matters of the heart.

"I can't, in case you forgot, I'm still on a leash. I have nothing to offer" he said

"You can't be serious!" she said now totally losing her patience "How can a man as confident as you, think so little of himself?"

"You don't understand, I've let her down too many times" he said shaking his head

"She doesn't trust you anymore" she deadpanned

"No" he said quietly

"Well, of course not. You're a conman and stealing a treasure and running away to an island is more important, right?" she said with sarcasm "Make her trust you again! Make it right this time!" she said raising her voice and pushing a finger on his chest

Neal looked up with a smirk "Oh look who's talking about running away"

She pursed her lips getting really angry and slapped him "Shut the fuck up. You have no right"

Neal just recovered from the slap, his cheek stinging. He took a deep breath and said "We both have let her down, Emily. I'm glad at least you're making some progress". He walked back to the living room "I should better go"

"Wait" she said walking up to him. Right now, she hated Neal with all her heart, however, she knew he was right and they both had left her down, abandoned her in their own unique way. She was no stranger to that guilty feeling, plus she was positive that Sara loved him and now she knew for sure that it wasn't a matter of lack of love or trust, it was just fear of being abandoned again. Emily wanted to make things right herself and heal that old wound she initiated so many years ago but she also knew that Neal had become very important in Sara's life, she could see it in her sister's eyes and this man, as flawed as he was, deserved a second chance. Neal had given Emily a second chance with Sara and now it was her turn to do the same for him. She stood in front of him and said "She's taking a massage at the hotel's spa". He frowned not understanding so she put a hand on his arm and looked into those blue eyes, trying to tell him everything "I want her to be happy too, so don't screw it up again"

He smiled briefly at her "Thanks"

Neal left the room feeling hope and went up to the spa room smiling. A Christmas miracle was in his wish list right now…


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

Becoming addicted to good massages was something easy to do for Sara; it was such a nice thing to do at any given time and she was just enjoying this as much as she had enjoyed all the previous times. She had come out of a very nice long steam aromatherapy session and a hot-stone back treatment; now she was getting ready to have a very nice 45 minute relaxing massage to complete the whole package. She was lying face down on the massage table, her face between that little hole and her upper back uncovered, waiting for the nice lady to come and do her magic.

What's taking her so long? She wondered… it had been almost 10 minutes since she had come in here waiting for the massage to start; not that she wasn't comfortable listening to some sort of forest music and feeling totally at ease but still… oh there it is, finally she heard footsteps and the noise of hands rubbing oil getting warmed-up for the massage.

"Mmm…" she moaned feeling strong hands working the muscles in her shoulders. This was so good! She felt gentle yet strong pressure undoing all kinds of knots in her back. This lady had very strong and big hands, very capable of melting her troubles away. The massage moved to her arms doing a fantastic job there too and then to her lower back and holly smokes! She couldn't help but moan again with pleasure, it was almost embarrassing, she thought, but hell she didn't care, this felt soooo good. She would make sure to tip the masseuse for such an outstanding job. Suddenly, Sara felt the sheet slipping even lower to the middle of her buttocks and she had never imagined this could be such a sore spot; she felt in heaven and she wasn't sure there was gonna be any muscular strength left in her body after this amazing treatment. This was by far the best massage she had ever had. She started feeling fingers 'walking' all the way up in her back until reaching her neck and those marvelous hands began working there too, massaging her scalp and down again in her neck, repeating the motion again and again.

Sara was so relaxed now that she was ready to fall asleep…

Wait, was that a kiss? She could have sworn she felt a kiss on her shoulder. She must be dreaming now…

Ok, that was definitely a kiss, she thought. She felt a gentle trail of kisses on her shoulder and she immediately opened her eyes startled and through the hole in the table she saw black men's shoes and trousers. Holy shit! She stood up freaked-out covering what she could with the sheet and almost falling off the table but she felt strong arms that caught her from falling down and now were hugging her.

"Hey, it's me…" said Neal, trying to calm her down

Sara was speechless, she felt happy, angry, aroused… all at the same time "Neal, what the hell are you doing!"

"I owed you a massage, remember?" he smiled sweetly

Sara was blushing and feeling completely exposed. Now that she knew it was Neal touching her all the way, she felt the heat running on her body instantly. Wow, he had amazing hands! And the way he had touched her! Plus, as usual, he was looking infuriatingly gorgeous and boyish, which was the perfect combination to get her turned on. She looked away from his eyes, trying to regain some control over her body's reactions. She tried pushing him away and seating properly on the massage table covering herself more with the sheet "I'm sorry I scared you but I don't regret it" he said with a cocky smile

She looked at him frowning. The bastard knew exactly the effect he had on her. She was still at a loss of words and she hated herself for it. He chose the moment to walk close to her again and ventured a hand on her face caressing softly her cheek "Sara, I missed you so much" he said very softly, almost a whisper. She closed her eyes feeling completely helpless. Damn the massage! Her body was completely betraying her, making all her normal defense mechanisms completely useless. Her body incapable of reacting, she wanted to kick him and punch him or at least slap him but her skin was over sensitive and every pore just screamed to be touched and that little voice in her head who wanted to kill Neal, was being heard farther away by the minute… all she could hear was her blood running wildly in her veins, making her skin alive and putting every single nerve on alert. She felt Neal getting even closer and gently parting her legs to step in between them; he moved his hand from her cheek into her neck, grabbing her gently but with enough strength as to claim his territory. An adventurous finger started running slowly from her earlobe down her neck, her shoulder, her arm and finally reaching her hand and joining the rest of his hand to entwine it with hers, pulling it into his much bigger one and lifting it to kiss every finger at a very slowly pace. Sara's head was spinning; she felt her hand go limp on top of her thigh which was covered partially by the sheet and then she felt his hand pushing the sheet up and he started caressing her there, it was such a feather-like touch, as if he was scared of being pushed away. Little did he know that right now, Sara would be dead before pushing him away. His lips found a way to her shoulder one more time, shy wet kisses there and then on the other shoulder and when he stopped she moaned almost inaudibly missing his touch. He must have felt encouraged with that because next thing she felt were his lips again on her neck, but keeping the very soft feather-like touch trailing kisses up to her cheek and in the corner of her mouth but not on her lips.

Sara could feel his breath close to her and she felt his nose bumping slightly with hers and then another kiss in the other corner of her mouth, so close to her waiting lips. Sara parted her lips ready for his but he softly said "open your eyes" and she did… Neal's eyes were almost black from such dilated pupils but they held so many emotions in them that Sara couldn't exactly place. There was definitely lust but there was also a mixture of love, tenderness and… was that fear? Sara frowned slightly, she had never seen fear on Neal's eyes; it pained her to see that because she recognized herself in them. They were both afraid, she realized and the realization hit her like a slap in the face making her heart ache for him. She wanted to tell him that she felt scared too, she wanted to beg him to never leave her again but words wouldn't come so she just closed the gap between them and moved in closer to his lips, with the same fear he had showed. It was a kiss full of weariness and she barely made contact. He remained still, barely touching her lips and slightly opening his, enough to capture barely her lower lip. He was still afraid, as if stepping on thin ice, carefully testing the ground. But what was he afraid of? The way he was touching her and barely kissing her, made Sara think he was afraid of being rejected maybe? Oh Neal… right now, she couldn't reject him even for all the tea in China! So Sara ventured a little to give him some reassurance and she slightly ran the tip of her tongue on his lower lip making him moan as if in pain and taking his cue to finally connect his lips fully with hers.

Oh yes, this is even better than she remembered. Neal Caffrey, ladies and gentlemen, master kisser of the universe. That little move of hers was all that took for Neal to gain confidence and claim her mouth with full force, his hands tangling in her hair and her neck. She placed her hands on his lower back hugging him and wrapping her legs around his thighs pushing him closer to her. They were both moaning and exploring their mouths with the same yearning as a thirsty man would when looking for water.

They finally parted feeling their breathing very labored and getting very warm in the small room full of candles and sweet smells. Neal held her face dearly and looked into her eyes with so much love that Sara wanted to cry. He didn't say a word and just hugged her as if holding on to her for dear life. She could literally hear his heart beating so fast in his chest and she hugged him back. They stayed like that for a couple more minutes only listening to their breathing as it calmed down by itself.

"Thank you" said Neal breaking the silence

"For what?" she asked

"For not pushing me away" he simply said pulling back and kissing her forehead

"Neal, I…" she started and he sushed-her putting a finger on her lips

He looked at her "I know, we need to talk, a lot. I just needed to kiss you right now, so thanks for letting me" he said with a shy smile

She couldn't help but give him a lopsided smile "Ok…"

"Um, not that I mind but I think you should better get dressed" he said smiling and grabbing the robe that was hanging in the door

Sara turned absolutely red. Amidst the heat of the moment, the treacherous sheet had just decided to fall down leaving her completely naked from the waist up. She mumbled a thank you while putting on the robe. He put a pair of slippers on her feet before helping her step down from the massage table.

He took her hand and opened the door "Thank you, Nancy" he told the lady who should have been the one massaging Sara. She saw how Neal slipped her a 100 bill and gave her a huge smile.

"You're very generous Mr. Halden, I hope your fiancée liked her surprise" said a blushing Nancy

Sara fake-smiled and said "He's adorable, isn't he?" while pinching Neal's butt making him flinch but keeping up appearances and smiling as well.

"Only for you darling" he said adoringly to her and grinning

She just shook her head "Let's go sweetheart" she said through gritted teeth.

While on the elevator she stepped away from him and crossed her arms stubbornly and pursing hers lips "I did like the massage"

He chuckled "Told you I was good at it"

The doors opened to the presidential suite's floor and they stepped out "This is as far as you go, Caffrey" said Sara standing at the door

He looked disappointed but didn't want to push her "Ok… can I see you later for dinner?"

"Um, I'm here with Emily and I just…" she started making up excuses. Truth was, after their little moment at the massage room, she didn't trust herself being around him alone

"That's ok, she can come along if you want to. I just want to be with you as much as possible before you go back to London" he said the last part with a hint of sadness and resignation in his voice

She sighed "Fine"

"Great, I'll come pick you up around 8, ok?" he said smiling

"Ok…" she said suddenly feeling shy

He hesitated for a minute and then leaned in to kiss her cheek "It's really great to see you, Sara" he said and then walked back in to the elevator leaving her there with her emotions running wild and her libido over the rooftop. She groaned in frustration… so much for staying mad at him. Damn him. But she was mad at him and just because he had been absolutely perfect back at the massage table, it didn't mean she had forgiven him… yeah right, her inner self said.

She opened the door to her room and found Emily watching TV "So, flushed skin, swollen lips… I take it the massage was good, sis?" said Emily with a mischievous grin

Sara frowned "What did you do?"

Emily laughed "I might have let Neal know that you were at the spa"

"Ugh, Emily!" said Sara with exasperation "How could you?!"

"C'mon, Sara, you didn't dislike it, did you? You might have felt cornered but not upset. Right?" she said with a knowing smile

Sara grunted frustrated with her sister "You and I are going out with Neal tonight" she said before closing the door to the bathroom. Emily just laughed harder.

Neal came out of the Plaza as if floating on clouds. Sara was pissed at him but he could still affect her and that was so good, it gave him hope. He grinned feeling oh so happy. He started walking to grab a cab home to prepare for later when his phone rang "Mozzie, my friend! What's up buddy?"

"Did you just stole something or you just got laid?" was Mozzie's reponse to Neal's cheerful mood

Neal laughed "No and no. I'm just happy… Sara's in town"

"Aaahhh I see and by the sound of it, there is still hope for you" said Mozzie

"I think so, yes" said Neal getting in the cab "Riverside drive please. So what's up Mozz?"

"Um, well, it's been a while since I was invited to a Christmas dinner and I just don't know what's the protocol, should I bring gifts or dessert? Maybe some wine from your private collection?" asked Mozzie

"Shit, the gifts! Mozz, I need to go gift shopping. I haven't bought anything for the Burke's and for Sara!" said a very panicked Neal

"Well, good luck on that. Shopping on Christmas Eve is worse than going to a Justin Bieber concert" said Mozzie horrified "I wasn't exactly thinking on buying them"

"Mozz…" said Neal in a threatening voice

"Neal, you're just getting too boring. When will you be home anyway?" said Mozzie pacing around Neal's apartment

"I'll be home soon darling" said Neal muttering

"Hurry up sweetheart" said Mozzie and then hung up

Neal was so happy but he still held a slice of fear. He didn't take rejection well and Sara not trusting him was one of the worst scenarios he could face. He had to find a way of winning back her trust and he knew Emily wasn't exactly on his side so he had to find an alternative…

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**So, what did you think? I don't feel particularly confident on writting intimacy, see, for me this scene at the massage table was considered intimacy! LOL Anyway, I have a thing for slow so I tried my best to do this achingly good and slow. Please let me know your thoughts!**

**Promise to update soon, though there are not many more chapters left in this story... **


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

At Neal's insistence, he and Mozzie had gone Christmas shopping to the MOMA's store. They decided that the only store that wouldn't be jammed with crazy last-minute shoppers would be a museum's store so that's why they went there and they proved themselves right, it was crowded alright but not as much as the other stores, you could actually walk around in here.

After 30 minutes, they had picked a very nice replica of Phillipe Stark's juicer sculpture for Elizabeth and a funny-looking apron with matching kitchen gloves portraying a Warhol painting with Elvis on it, for Peter. Now Neal had approached the Swarovsky collection of little replicas from famous sculptures and paintings, to see if he could find something for Sara…

"Um, Neal… Jimmy Snooze is here" muttered Mozzie in a very conspiracy-like tone

"So what?" asked Neal not really paying attention; he had his eye on a pair of crystal earrings that emulated snowflakes, they were kind of corny but beautiful for this season of the year. It was either that or a watch with all the machinery transparent and small blue crystals on the cover replicating Van Gog's starry night.

"Jimmy Snooze, thief extraordinaire, on a museum's store?!" said Mozzie as if that explained everything. Neal just looked at him tilting his head and raising an eyebrow "Yeah, I know we are here too and doing some innocent shopping but I don't think he's here for the same good reasons"

That actually called Neal's attention and saw that the suspect was actually screening the ceiling and knocking tentatively on the walls next to it. Suddenly Neal remembered that right on top of this store was the room that held Frida Kahlo's paintings and the ceilings of this museum had very wide intersections in between them to allow air-vents to go through. "I think I should better call Peter to send a surveillance team" said Neal finally believing Mozzie's hunch

"Uh, Neal? That might be a little too late… he's making his move" said Mozzie pointing at Jimmy who had already began making his way to the store's second floor. Neal cursed under his breath and started chasing after him "Call Peter!" he yelled at Mozzie

"What? Wait! Where are you going?! You're not FBI, Neal!" said Mozzie trying to stop him but to no avail. He grabbed his phone sighing with resignation "Suit, consider this a Christmas present from yours truly but Neal just went chasing after what looks like a thief about to robe the MOMA"

"What?!" was Peter's outraged response

"Hurry up, suit! I'm pretty sure this guy is armed, he usually operates with guns. His name is Jimmy Colton but he goes by the nickname of Jimmy Snooze, just because he's always snoozing, he has some kind of allergy or something and…" rambled Mozzie but the other line went dead, apparently Peter was not interested on a guy's allergies

Neal ran upstairs all the way to the Frida room and felt relieved to see that he wasn't too late. He grabbed his cellphone and called Mozzie "Mozz, buy me a gun with blanks from the gift shop, I saw one in the toy's section, I have an idea. Hurry up!"

Mozzie was scared with Neal's crazy ideas. He suffered from Impulse Control Disorder and he usually did stupid things. He didn't hesitate though and hurried to buy the damn pistol. He ran upstairs and went with Neal. "Where's Jimmy?"

"I just saw him placing nonchalantly little laser shots in the corners of the room, he might be planning to do a Spiderman" said Neal referring to a type of heist they had planned long time ago but never did. It consisted on placing laser beams on strategic points in the room to build a security field around the target, so whoever tried to come in and stop him from grabbing the painting would have to face getting burned by the laser. Later on, the thief could just walk out without getting touched.

"Ooohh I always wanted to do that. So what's the plan?" asked Mozzie

"I'm gonna break each laser dot before he gets to turn them on by shooting them with this" said Neal grinning

Mozzie shook his head "Poor guy, this is actually a brilliant heist, Neal, you should let him finish!"

"Mozzie, this is my chance to prove Peter how much I want to get this thing off" he said pointing to his ankle. Mozzie nodded and went to hide on the entrance of this room to wait in case Peter made his big FBI entrance.

Jimmy placed the first laser dot on a corner, he was slick, no one noticed except for Neal who very accurately shot it and broke it without Jimmy noticing. Then came the second, third, fourth and three more; this guy really wanted to build an unbreakable cobweb with lasers. Neal expertly broke each one enjoying every bit of the process. He was good with guns and had an impeccable aim so this was a fantastic way of putting that talent to good use.

Jimmy was done placing all laser dots in the required spots. A lot of tourists were still there so the security guard didn't even notice anything out of the ordinary. Jimmy went close to the Frida painting and he started pushing the button of the lasers over and over frustrated it wasn't working.

"You can keep pushing that button but I don't think that's going to work" said Neal with the fake gun drawn and pointing expertly to Jimmy "FBI, put your hands in the air"

Jimmy cursed under his breath and turned around doing as he was told. People in the room screamed in shock and Jimmy saw a window of opportunity while stepping behind a young woman who happened to be next to him. Neal caught sight of his intentions and warned him while stepping closer to him

"Don't move or I'll put a bullet in you" - Neal felt so empowered, he didn't even care that Peter was gonna scold him for impersonating an agent once again but hell, he was making an arrest! Now, if he had only thought about the handcuffs… he took his cellphone out "Peter, I need backup, I'm at the 2nd floor, gallery B" and then hung up not even letting Peter answer back.

Mozzie walked to Neal "Um, here… handcuffs" he whispered, handing Neal a pair of handcuffs that came with the gun, it was a whole detective kid's set.

Neal smiled and went to Jimmy, grabbing him forcefully and cuffing him with the plastic handcuffs "Jimmy Colton, you are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent, everything you say or do will be used against you in a court of law" he recited the speech which he had heard so many times before

When Peter came in the room followed by Jones, Diana and a dozen other agents, they could only hear clapping and they saw Neal smiling, waving at the audience and pushing a very much handcuffed man. Peter was in shock but didn't say anything while Jones and Diana took the arrested man "Um, you might wanna replace the handcuffs… they're plastic" said Neal whispering the last part which was an eye-opener for the agents who only shook their heads and chuckled taking away the man.

"Thank you Agent…?" said the security guard coming up to Neal with an extended hand

"Caffrey" he said answering proudly and then turned sheepishly to look at Peter who had a look of bewilderment "Um, this is my boss, Special Agent Burke"

The security guard shook both their hands "Congratulations for having such valuable assets on your team, Agent Burke. Agent Caffrey here, saved us all from this crook. Thank you"

Neal stood there balancing from one foot to another and nervously gave Peter the gun "I used this to stop him from executing the Spiderman"

Peter took the plastic gun and his face just kept on getting more priceless by the minute "You have so much explaining to do, Junior Agent Caffrey, come on" said Peter grabbing Neal by the shoulder and pushing him to the door. "Mozzie, I know you're hiding behind that column, you have to come too" said Peter without even bothering on looking back

They rode in silence until they reached the FBI building and went straight to the conference room. Neal and Mozzie sat on a chair next to each other silently contemplating while Peter just paced back and forth in the room, hands on his hips and all.

"I don't think he's happy with your little heroic gesture" whispered Mozzie

"Shhh"

"So, let me see if I get this" said Peter pinching the bridge of his nose "you impersonated an FBI agent with a plastic gun and arrested an armed criminal with plastic cuffs. What were you thinking?! He could've killed you or taken a hostage!"

"Peter, calm down. I had everything under control and to be fair, I did call you to let you know about the robbery, well, Mozzie did" said Neal getting defensive

"Yes, suit, I did call you and you hung up on me" added Mozzie

Peter sighed "You two think this is a children's game? Being an FBI agent is not just the badge or the gun, you can't just go and do that! How am I gonna explain this? And more so, did you two realize that by trying to stop this criminal with plastic cop's gear, totally make you look like suspects as well? How did you even know he was planning this heist, huh?!"

"Peter, we were just doing some shopping at the museum's store and Mozzie saw this guy" explained Neal

"Oh so you knew him? That doesn't make you look like suspects at all…" said Peter drenched in sarcasm

"Well of course I knew him, that's how I recognized him and I knew that he was up to no good there" defended Mozzie

"So he was just a known criminal walking around a museum's store? Just like the two of you?" said Peter now totally being ironic

"Yes! I mean, no!" said Mozzie not helping "He wasn't just shopping, he looked suspicious from the beginning"

Neal stood up and went close to Peter trying to make things right "Look, Peter, I understand I cannot go around doing this but I saw a chance of stopping him and you wouldn't have made it in time to stop him instead so I did my best and prevented a robbery. I never said I was an agent, people assumed I was and if they had asked for some ID, I could've pulled out my consultant's badge saying I was scouting the place for a robbery that I got intel on and that's it, I never faked my name or anything and I did stop this guy from stealing one of Frida Kahlo's most expensive pieces" said Neal feeling proud of himself "I just wanted to help" he said these last words more softly trying to convince Peter of his good intentions

Looking at those innocent blue eyes… "Agh, Neal! You're so frustrating!" said Peter grunting

Neal just stepped back "can I get you a coffee? I assume we're not done here"

"Get out and go with Jones to give your statement, both of you. I have a suspect to question next door" said Peter already walking out of the room

Neal sighed with relief "That was close… what time is it? Oh shit! I had to pick up Sara at eight!"

"Um, I think you're a little late for that… it's 8:30" said Mozzie

"Neal, come this way" commanded Jones

"Uh, can I make a quick call please?" pleaded Neal

"Caffrey, I wanna get out of here too. Give your statement and in ten minutes you can leave, come on" said Jones not giving him time

Neal just grabbed his phone and quickly texted "Sara, I'm sorry. Long story short, I'm at the FBI, I had some last-minute crime solving to do. Can I stop buy later or tomorrow morning? I need to talk to you"

He didn't get an answer and he was sure she was gonna be really pissed at him. He grunted and went on with Jones… No good deed goes unpunished, he thought.

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**I had fun writing this chapter, LOL. Let me know your thoughts! **


	29. Chapter 29

**Thank so much for your comments! You truly make my day! :)**

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**Chapter 29**

If there was one thing good about Neal Caffrey was his punctuality, he was always on time and always kept his promises. That's what a good conman does, never admit or commit to anything unless he intends to see it through. So that's why Sara had been a little worried when he didn't show up on time at her hotel door; she had started pacing around wondering what could've happened and Emily just made fun of her not understanding that a no-show from Caffrey was not something common. By 8:35, she got a text message from him… so he was at the FBI… allegedly. Sara sighed disappointed and not ready to admit she felt sad that she wasn't going out with him tonight…

"He's not coming" she said quietly not daring to look at Emily in the eye

"Oh? Cold feet?" asked Emily with a raised eyebrow

"No, just some FBI thing, he didn't explain further" she muttered under her teeth, not even believing herself

Emily snorted "Yeah right…"

Sara frowned not liking that Emily was doubtful of Neal; yeah well, he is no stranger to lying so it wouldn't be rare but Sara knew better "He's… he's not like that, he usually doesn't lie about these things"

Emily looked at her sensing her discomfort "Well, you're already dressed up so why don't we go out anyway? Just the two of us, come on, it could be fun"

Sara started shaking her head but Emily just grabbed her hand and started pulling her out of the door "No, Em, I don't feel like it…"

"Shut up and keep walking hot woman, we're going out" said Emily and that was that.

By 11 pm Neal was finally done with paperwork and pretty much ran out of the FBI building with Mozzie tailing behind him "Neal! Will you just stop?"

"I have to go see Sara, ok? She isn't answering her phone, see you tomorrow"

He grabbed a cab to the Plaza. He reached the reception "Hi, I'm here for Sara Ellis, presidential suite"

"Your name, sir?" asked the young man at the front desk

"Caffrey"

"Oh, miss Ellis said you can reach her at LAVO in 39 E 58th street, just a block away from here, sir"

Neal frowned, that was odd "Ok, thank you"

He reached the place and sure it was packed with people having fun. He knew the place very well, it was a two-part club, one was a fancy Italian bistro which served very good food and the other was a very luxurious dancing club with disco balls and all. He went straight up to the restaurant expecting Sara to be there but he didn't spot her so he went to the lower level and there she was looking hot as ever, dancing right in the middle of the dancing floor surrounded by people, men actually, he grunted and just kept walking slowly trying to push people away, mostly drunken people. Some women winked at him, nothing unusual about that so he didn't even look at them… he kept walking trying to make eye contact with Sara, who was engrossed in the music and the lights that seemed to set her hair on fire – he smiled enjoying seeing her so carefree – he was almost there, ready to wrap his arms around her and join her in the fun when some blond guy appeared from somewhere with hands like an octopus wrapping himself around Sara and she let him and actually smiled in a very flirtatious way to him! Neal couldn't believe his eyes, why would she invite him here when she was just picking up some random guy?! He was fuming now, he felt ready to rip that guy's head off, anger and jealousy beyond reason, which was a very un-Caffrey state of mind so he just froze in the middle of the dance floor.

"Are you just gonna stay there watching?" came a voice in his ear. Despite the loud music, he heard it clearly. He turned and saw a smirking Emily who then wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him to the side "Sara looks like she's having fun" she shouted close to his ear again and Neal gave her a murderous look "Oh look at you all angry. Did you actually had some FBI thing to do or you just lied to Sara, as you usually do?"

Neal wasn't gonna waste any more time with Emily when he could see Sara getting more and more friendly with that guy. Emily saw it too and started laughing "Sara might be a little tipsy but then again, this is what you do in a nightclub"

Neal grabbed Emily by the shoulders and sat her at a nearby stool. So it had been Emily who left the message for him at the hotel's front desk, Neal thought "You're a good influence, getting your little sister drunk" he said sarcasm dripping all over the place

"She's having fun!" said Emily challenging him "She deserves a little happiness you know?"

"Right" he said now definitely tired of this with Emily. He turned around determined to get Sara but Emily grabbed his hand making him stop "Neal, I mean it, don't you hurt her. If you love her, PROVE IT!" she said this last part grabbing Neal forcefully from his tie.

Neal took a deep breath. Prove it. Those two words seemed to follow him everywhere but for different reasons, yet they connected him with the people he cared about; first Peter and now Sara. He pushed Emily back in the stool and left, walking quickly this time, to get to Sara fast.

He spotted her after a couple of minutes and he almost ran when he saw that the guy she was dancing with was trying to kiss her and she didn't look happy.

Sara felt strong arms in her waist pulling her back and she recognized the smell. "Are you done, big guy? This lady is taken" he said putting a protective arm around her and forcing her to stay on his side

"Fuck off, man! I saw her first" said the big guy getting closer to Neal

Neal could smell the alcohol in the guy's breath. No matter how angry or jealous Neal was, he knew his strengths and weaknesses and picking up a fight in a club was not exactly his area of expertise but he did know how to get rid of this scumbag. Neal got closer to the guy, who actually looked pretty decent and wealthy, and pushed him a little bit "Oh hey! I heard the guy at the entrance was looking for you, seems he found your wallet, you must've dropped it" said Neal pointing at the guy in the entrance.

The big guy just frowned not really understanding but he went to look for his wallet in his jacket pocket and sure enough, it wasn't there "Shit!" and he started running for the door leaving them alone

Neal turned to Sara still holding her tightly in his arms "You ok?"

Sara seemed to be glued to his chest and just kept staring at his very blue eyes. She just nodded. It must be the alcohol but Neal looked beautiful under the neon lighting, almost angelic, she thought. "I hope you don't mind your little friend's paying tonight" he said holding the guy's wallet in his hand.

Sara laughed throwing her head back and he took that moment to wrap his arms tighter in her waist and kiss her brow. Leave it to Neal to fix a typical club fight with a 'magic trick' and no violence. He grinned and then hugged her completely and started lightly swaying to the music in a very sensual way. The music was fast-tempo but Neal had set his own rhythm… "You are mine"

Sara thought she heard him but with the loud music and the alcohol in her brain, she could've just imagined it so she pulled back a little to see his face.

When he saw her questioning face, he smiled lazily "Yeah, you heard me. I love you, Sara"

She just stared at him hypnotized and he took his cue to kiss her. It was a light kiss at first but the passion soon took a hold of their bodies and it got deeper and more intense. She wrapped her arms around his neck getting a strong hold of his soft hair. He just got a firm grip on her hips keeping her in place and sure enough, marking his territory with his hands wherever they could reach.

After several minutes, they came up for air and he grinned at her "Wanna go home?"

She shook her head and pulled his tie, making it loose and pulling it off to wrap it in her wrist "Take me dancing, Caffrey" she said grabbing his hand and pulling him to the dance floor

They started dancing to the music, having fun. Sara kept on drinking some more and Neal just shook his head smiling and tried to keep up with her but of course drinking a lot less, he had to stay sober to be able to take care of her. They were having a blast, teasing each other and fooling around. If he had known that Sara would be such an enthusiast partier, he would've brought her clubbing before. He also knew that when tipsy, she became a huge tease and loved playing the little cat-and-mouse game so Neal kept trying to find his way to her lips or her neck but she kept playing hard to get and she even flirted with other guys around which made Neal look adorable, Sara thought, -pursed lips and furrowed brow-. After a while of her flirting with other guys and pretending to ignore him, Neal had had enough "Stop it, Sara" he said on her ear through gritted teeth pulling her close to his body.

She pushed him away with a smirk and innocently said "What? Aren't you having fun?"

Neal frowned. Even when Sara was drunk and smiling, this was not fun. He pulled her close again and kissed her with a little roughness trying to play along "it's no fun if you keep getting away from me" he said mock-smiling

She just glared at him and grabbed him by his shirt muttering "Then why did you do it?"

The look on her face told him she was no longer playing and the tear that rolled down her cheek confirmed it. She cleaned that tear and started walking away "Sara, wait!" he tried catching her but she made it quickly to the ladies room

"Sorry man, this is ladies only" said the guy in the entrance who was apparently keeping boys and girls separate in their respective bathrooms

Neal cursed under his breath. He was trying to make sense of everything that had happened. Sara seemed to respond to him in a positive way, hell she was even playing along just like old times. The look on her face said so but he now understood that it was not a matter of lack of love or trust. She was pissed off at him for leaving her when he ran to the island. Even when she told him she was fine, turns out she actually wasn't and had kept all this under the rug. She had been afraid of him leaving her all along and that's why she decided she should leave him instead, before he could do it again. Neal closed his eyes and ran his hands through his hair feeling a headache already coming along. It was all clear now…

"What happened? What did you do?!" came Emily's voice protesting from behind

"Nothing… can you please get her? Time to go" he said

Emily looked suspiciously at him but went inside the bathroom. She found Sara leaning on the sink, looking pale and not well "Hey sis, it's ok. Let's go" she said placing a wet paper towel on her forehead and helping her to stand up. Almost at the door, Sara ran back to pay a visit to Mr Toilet and empty her stomach. Emily stood behind her rubbing her back and pulling her hair out of the way "Come on now, let's go" she whispered tenderly.

They made it out of the club and Neal went to get a cab. They all got in and Sara fell asleep almost instantly leaning her head back in the seat "To the Plaza please" said Neal to the cabbie and then to Emily "I'll drop you there and then I'll take Sara home with me"

"Like hell you will! She's staying with me" she said stubbornly

Neal pleaded with his eyes "Emily, look, I know I've made a lot of mistakes but I think I know how to fix them now but I need to be with her when she wakes up tomorrow. Believe me, I love her with all my heart. I will take care of her, ok?"

Emily just sighed "Fine… but I swear to you Neal if you…"

"Yeah I know" he said grabbing Emily's hand "Thank you"

They made it to June's and Neal kissed Sara's temple lightly "Hey, we're home. Can you make it up there?" – Sara fluttered her eyes slightly and nodded

Neal half-carried her up and he just had to pick her up in the last steps of the stairs. She wasn't much shorter than him but she felt so light and delicate in his arms. He carried her bridal style to his bed and ran to his closet to retrieve a pair of pants and a sweatshirt – he smiled knowing that Sara was gonna hate him for putting such hideous clothes on her, due to her silk policy, she would never ever wear those to bed but it was cold so Neal didn't care. He went to her and took off her heels and gently rolled her over a little to unzip her dress at the back. He took it off and gasped when he saw her beautiful body and pale skin only clasped in black bra and panties; he had missed her so much. He yearned to run his hands and kiss every inch of skin there but it would have to wait until she was sober so he put the warm clothes on her and tucked her in.

He then went to put on his own pajamas and brush his teeth. He looked in the mirror and he looked awful, tired, pale… but he finally got a true glimpse into Sara Ellis' darkest fear, to which, him stupid Neal Caffrey, had contributed to make bigger after his little escapade. He washed his face and hurried back to the kitchen.

He took some water in a glass and some Excedrin. He then went to the bed and shook Sara slightly "Hey baby, you gotta take this"

She moaned reluctantly and he kissed her nose which tickled her and made her open her eyes. He smiled… Drunken Sara was cute. She obeyed and swallowed the pills "Good girl" he said and kissed her cheek

She pulled his sleeve "Don't go"

He smiled sadly "I'm not going anywhere" – he set the glass on the nightstand and lay down next to her. She immediately snuggled into his arms humming contently

"Neal?" she asked after a couple minutes

"Yes?"

"Did you call me baby?" she said slurring her words

He chuckled. Sara Ellis was the ever perceptive even when drunk "Yes I did. Now go to sleep"

She snuggled again "I like it"

"Good" he smiled

"Neal?"

"Hmm?"

"Did you return that man's wallet?"

"Yes but not before he paid for a round of tequila shots for the whole party"

"S'good. Didn' like'him"

"Glad to hear that"

"I like you better"

He chuckled "That's good"

She got quiet for a while and Neal thought she might have finally fallen asleep…

"Neal?"

"What is it?"

"Luv'ya" she mumbled

Neal smiled "I love you too"

She sighed and wrapped her arm around him "you're here…" she sighed and breathed in deeply "you're here… you're…" she kept repeating over and over quietly and it broke Neal's heart

"Yeah I'm here, baby. I'm not leaving you. Never again" he said and closed his eyes hoping that sober Sara would be willing to open up just as much in the morning.


End file.
